CAPE TOWN, June 11 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from floods in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province over the past two days has risen to 49, local authorities announced on Wednesday afternoon.
"As of this afternoon, we have confirmed that 49 of our fellow citizens have sadly lost their lives in the OR Tambo District alone," said Eastern Cape Premier Lubabalo Oscar Mabuyane at a press conference.
Mabuyane said the number of people confirmed to have been in the minibus taxi that was swept away on Tuesday is 13. "Three learners were rescued alive yesterday, and sadly, four learners have been confirmed to be deceased, together with the driver and a conductor of the minibus taxi. Four learners are still missing," he said. "The rest of the deceased people are citizens of different ages."
"Search and recovery operations are continuing across all affected areas, particularly within the OR Tambo District Municipality, where torrential rains over recent days have caused devastating landslides and flooding, leaving hundreds of families displaced as well as significant damage to critical infrastructure," he added.
According to the premier, the severe weather has also caused power outages across several areas.
"Over the past 48 hours, at least 136,000 customers have since been brought back online, down from 300,000 that were without electricity," Mabuyane noted.
He said the provincial government is on the ground assessing the damage to support relief operations and engage directly with affected families and communities.
"A coordinated, multidisciplinary Emergency and Rescue Services team has been deployed and remains actively involved in recovery, evacuation, and support efforts across the affected areas in the province," said Mabuyane.
"We call on individuals and organizations to support communities as they continue to deal with this devastating loss," he added.
