SA Mourns as Woman Dies in Recent Durban Floods, SAWS Warns of Continuing Deluge

• The South African Weather Service warned that the severe rainfall in parts of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, will continue
• The area has been hit with terrible and damaging rainfall, which has resulted in roads being flooded and infrastructure damage
• The eThekwini municipality conveyed condolences after a woman died when her car was washed away during the storm

Tebogo Mokwena, a dedicated Briefly News current affairs journalist, contributed coverage of international and local social issues like health, corruption, education, unemployment, labour, service delivery protests and immigration in South Africa during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

DURBAN, KWAZULU-NATAL— The South African Weather Service warned that the deluge in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, will continue for the rest of the weekend from 15 March 2025. A woman lost her life during the floods in Durban on 13 March 2025, and the municipality said infrastructure was damaged.

What will the weather be like?

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The South African Weather Service (SAWS) issued a Yellow Level 2 warning for parts of the Northern Cape, the North West, Free State and Gsuteng. It also issued a Yellow Level 4 warning for the entire south coast, including Richards Bay and Durban. The Yellow Level 2 Warning will bring heavy downpours, localised flooding, strong damaging winds, excessive lightning and hail.

The coast's Yellow Level 4 warning will flood roads and bridges. Durban experienced flooding from the evening of 15 March, when SAWS issued an Orange Level 6 warning. Roads were flooded, and infrastructure was badly damaged.

Woman dies in floods

According to the eThekwini Local Municipality's Facebook page, emergency teams responded to an incident where a 54-year-old woman died after she attempted to cross a low-lying bridge in Durban. Her car was washed away. The emergency services also rescued 10 people whose vehicles were submerged in water on the M19 West Nound near Reservoir Hills. The floods damaged structures and caused mudslides in the western parts of Durban.

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Roads remain closed

The N2, M4, M19, Umngeni road and several Pinetown roads have been closed. Stapleton Road remains closed. The municipality also warned that the Heaton Nicholson Drive Bridge is unstable. Clinics have been affected by the rain as some infrastructure has been damaged.

Recent floods in South Africa

• KwaZulu-Natal residents mourned the loss of their relatives early in March after they died during the floods
• The Democratic Alliance in Johannesburg on 11 March called for the Gauteng government to prioritise fixing infrastructure when SAWS issued a warning for floods, which would affect Gauteng
• ActionSA was concerned that Gauteng's infrastructure would not withstand the Yellow Level 2 Warning SAWS issued for Gauteng on 11 March

Durban residents complain

Durbanites commenting on eThwekini's Facebook page complained of not having access to basic services due to the floods.

Kerry Leigh Fortmann said:

"There are parts of Westville without electricity. The call centre is not answering. How do we get answers?"

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Mellisha Prithilal Kistan said:

"The Amoati Inanda area does not have water again for two days."

Mohamed Noorgat said:

"As long as the president and his men have generators, the citizens can suffer without electricity, and little will be done."

Hlengiwe Brown said:

"We are currently on the 26th hour without electricity in Newlands West. We arenowworriedthat the fridge will start defreezing and the food will get spoiled."

Vishen Naidoo said:

"Stormwater drains and pipes need urgent clearing and cleansing."

Dlala Thukzin pledged to help flood victims

In a related article, Briefly News reported that amapiano artist Dlala Thukzin pledged to help the victims of the flood in KwaZulu-Natal. He said he would also help victims in his neighbourhood of Lamontville.

He posted on Instagram and called on other artists in the entertainment industry to lend a helping hand to those who were hit by the damaging floods in the province. South Africans applauded him.

Source: Briefly News