Search and rescue teams are searching for the bodies of two men who were among six people that were washed away in uMsinga Local Municipality last Thursday.
Image: KZN Cogta Department / Facebook
Two men remain missing and the bodies of four people have been recovered after a bakkie was swept away while travelling across a low-lying bridge last Thursday during a severe storm in uMsinga Local Municipality, in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
The KZN Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) said its Provincial Disaster Management Centre continues to coordinate search and recovery operations for the two people who remain missing.
The six people were in a vehicle when the driver attempted to cross a low-lying bridge in eNadi, eMabovini, just after 7pm.
On Saturday, search and rescue teams recovered the bodies of two women, one of them pregnant; the first was located in the iNadi River (uMsinga) and the second in the uThukela River on the Nkandla Local Municipality side.
The bakkie driver attempted to cross a low lying bridge amid heavy rains and the vehicle was washed away.
Image: KZN Cogta / Facebook
On Sunday, the team recovered the bodies of two more people from the uThukela River: a woman on the uMsinga side and a man at eMakhabeleni within the uMvoti Local Municipality.
Cogta said the victims identified thus far are aged between 25 and 40.
Cogta MEC Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi extended his deepest condolences to the bereaved families.
He also commended the search and rescue teams for their tireless efforts across multiple municipal boundaries to provide closure to the families.
The department said that with the uMsinga Local Municipality, it is in constant liaison with the affected families to provide the necessary support during this period.
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