Three Bodies Recovered as Rescue Teams Hunt for Missing Workers in KwaZulu-Natal Floods

• Search and rescue teams continue search efforts to locate missing farm workers in flooded KwaZulu-Natal
• Three bodies have been recovered so far, with several others still unaccounted for
• Authorities urge motorists to avoid low-lying bridges during heavy rainfall due to dangerous water levels

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

KWAZULU-NATAL - Search and rescue teams are continuing efforts to locate missing victims after a bakkie carrying farm workers was swept off a flooded bridge in uMsinga, northern KwaZulu-Natal, during heavy rain on Thursday evening, 5 March 2026.

Vehicle washed off a low-lying bridge during the storm

According to a report by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), a third body was recovered from the Tugela River in the Msinga area on Saturday morning, 7 March 2026, bringing the number of confirmed fatalities to three. Several people remain missing. The vehicle was carrying eight occupants when it was washed off a low-lying bridge during the storm. Two people managed to escape before the vehicle was swept away by the swollen river, while the others were carried downstream.

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The incident occurred shortly after 7 pm on Thursday, 5 March 2026, at Infenebude Bridge on the P17 road in the eNadi area of eMabovini. KwaZulu-Natal Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs spokesperson Senzelwe Mzila said the vehicle attempted to cross the flooded bridge when strong currents swept it away. Mzila confirmed that two occupants reached safety, while the remaining six were carried away by the floodwaters.

Water levels can become dangerous

KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Thulasizwe Buthelezi dispatched provincial disaster management teams to the scene. Officials, working with the South African Police Service Search and Rescue unit, began operations shortly after the incident was reported. By Friday, 6 March 2026, authorities confirmed that two bodies had been recovered while the search continued for the remaining victims. On Saturday morning, 7 March 2026, rescuers recovered a third body from the Tugela River.

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Buthelezi said search teams would remain on the ground until the missing people were located and that all necessary resources had been deployed to continue the operation. He also extended condolences to the families of the victims and confirmed that the department is providing support to those affected. The department has urged motorists to avoid crossing low-lying bridges during heavy rainfall, warning that rapidly rising water levels can become dangerous within minutes. Disaster management teams remain on high alert across KwaZulu-Natal as severe weather conditions persist.

2 Bodies found as car with 8 passengers swept away in KZN

Briefly News also reported that 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.

Source: Briefly News