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200 families relocated after Gauteng heavy rains

Johannesburg emergency services relocated about 200 families living on the banks of Jukskei River to temporary shelters.
Johannesburg emergency services relocated about 200 families living on the banks of Jukskei River to temporary shelters.
Image: 123RF/Surut Wattanamaetee

Persistent and heavy rains in Pretoria and Johannesburg on Friday night and Saturday morning led to localised flooding in the two cities, and forced the Johannesburg emergency services to relocate some 200 families living on the banks of the Jukskei River to temporary shelters as their shacks were affected.

The flash floods also affected two health facilities, the Olievenhoutbosch clinic in Centurion and the accident and emergency unit at the Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg.

The Tshwane emergency services department said it received about 15 calls of houses that were “flooded”  in Loftus Gardens and Atteridgeville in the early hours of Saturday, only to find that water had seeped into the houses.

The Tshwane firefighters and towing services assisted motorists to safety from 12 vehicles that were stuck in a pool of water at a bridge in WF Nkomo Drive in Pretoria West on Saturday morning.

In Johannesburg, flash flooding on Saturday morning overwhelmed the city's water system infrastructure in some parts, resulting in flooding and road closures.

In Setswetla informal settlement, 200 households were affected when the  Jukskei River  burst its banks.

The city's disaster divisional head Tshepo Motlhale said temporary accommodation was arranged for the affected households.

“It is anticipated that more households could still be affected,” Motlhale said.

The Gauteng health department said it deployed additional teams to assist in clearing the blockages that led to flooding in some sections of the Helen Joseph Hospital.

The affected sections were ready for operation later on Saturday morning.

In Kliptown, Soweto, some communities had been evacuated to safety shelters, schools and churches as a safety measure.

In Soweto, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department said a number of main roads were flooded on Saturday morning due to overnight rains on Friday. These included  Chris Hani Road.

Several roads were flooded on Saturday morning as the result of the floods, including Witkoppen Road in Fourways, the Buccleuch Drive bridge, the N3 Gillooly's interchange, some sections of the N1 and the M1 double-decker section.

The City of Johannesburg warned residents to stay away from rivers as the increased flow due to rains made the areas unsafe.

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