2 Bodies Found As Car With 8 Passengers Swept Away in KwaZulu-Natal

• A flooded bridge swept away a vehicle carrying eight people in the northern parts of KwaZulu-Natal on 5 March 2026
• This is after the South African Weather Service (SAWS) warned that the province would be hit by heavy rainfall until the weekend
• The government dispatched provincial disaster management teams to search for the missing victims after some managed to survive

For seven years, Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News’ Deputy Head of Current Affairs, South Africa, covered a range of topics, including accidents, fires, outbreaks, nature, weather, and natural disaster-related incidents, at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

UMSINGA, KWAZULU-NATAL — The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has dispatched disaster management teams to search for the occupants of a vehicle which was swept away in uMsinga, KwaZulu-Natal on 6 March 2026.

According to IOL, the incident happened after 7 pm when the vehicle, which carried eight people, was trying to cross the Infenebude Bridge on the P17 road in eMabovini. The low-lying bridge was flooded due to the heavy rainfall, which the South African Weather Service (SAWS) warned would continue until the weekend of 8 March. Two occupants managed to escape and swim to safety. The remaining six were unaccounted for when the disaster management team commenced their search.

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2 bodies found the next day

The search yielded two bodies the next day, on 6 March. The search continues for the four missing victims. The province’s COGTA MEC Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi said that all resources have been deployed to ensure that the operation proceeds with urgency. The team will remain on the ground until the missing passengers are located, he added.

The department urged motorists and members of the public to avoid crossing low-lying bridges during heavy rainfall and warned that the rapidly rising waters pose a danger to vehicles and pedestrians. The province was recently hit by heavy floods in January, which destroyed infrastructure and claimed lives due to the effects of the La Niña weather oscillation system, which affected the weather in December 2026. The system also resulted in damaging floods in Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

South Africans caution motorists

Netizens on Facebook warned motorists against crossing low-lying bridges during heavy storms.

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Terry Van Der Walt said:

“If you don’t get someone to walk ahead of the vehicle to check the current or condition of the road, this is highly likely to happen. People never learn this lifesaving technique, sadly.”

Thabang Molefe added:

“I don’t understand and will never understand grown-up people knowing that running water is dangerous. Instead, they drive through.”

Kwazikwenkosi Wakwa Mngomezulu said:

“Only the eye can cross an overflowing river, not a car.”

Nozipho Nazo Zulu-Lekwakwe was huet.

“It’s so painful.”

2-year-old child drowns in pit during floods

In a related article, Briefly News reported that a two-year-old boy drowned in Humulani village near Phalaborwa on the weekend before 19 January 2026. The young boy's death came as the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces were struck by severe rainfall, which destroyed infrastructure.

Tolerance Mabunda wandered near an excavated pit and fell into it. His body was discovered, and he was pulled from the water, which had collected inside the excavated pit, making him one of the youngest victims of the floods.

Source: Briefly News