A crack team of Search and Rescue Unit cops have been deployed to the northern reaches of KwaZulu-Natal as a precautionary measure as the tropical depression formerly known as Dineo looms.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that a team of men‚ who had previously been stationed in Pietermaritzburg‚ had been redeployed.

“We can confirm that members from Port Shepstone Search and Rescue Unit were withdrawn from Dusi Canoe Race operations and deployed to Umkhanyakude area for assistance in case of emergencies as a result of Cyclone Dineo‚” he said.

KZN EMS spokesperson Robert McKenzie said that emergency service personnel remained on high alert‚ but no incidents had yet been reported.

Initial estimates suggest that up to 200mm of rainfall lashed Inhambane on the coast of Mozambique after Dineo made a landfall on Wednesday. At the time it was designated a tropical cyclone‚ but has since been downgraded to a tropical depression.

The South African Weather Service said while no direct rainfall measurements were available‚ their initial figures were based on satellite-derived estimates.