Heavy rain is expected to continue in Durban and other parts of KwaZulu-Natal until at least Thursday, according to the South African Weather Service.
This comes as logistics service providers brace themselves for the ongoing impact of torrential rain and flooding.
East Coast Radio weather forecaster Wiseman Dlamini said “some improvement” could be expected from Thursday onwards.
Most of the flood damage had occurred along the coast, he added.
"It looks like most areas along the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, including Margate and Port Edward on the south coast, and Durban were severely affected. Mount Edgecombe and Virginia were among the areas with the highest amount of rainfall in the past 24-hours.”
Late last night 33 people were confirmed dead in Durban and traffic chaos continued with several major roads closed and re-routed, according to Nomusa Dube-Ncube, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for co-operative governance and traditional affairs.
“In addition to collapsed buildings and flooded roads, sewer lines were blocked and electricity pylons had toppled over.”
Trains had also stopped running due to flooding, she added.
Transnet Port Terminals (TPT) indicated yesterday (Tuesday) that it had activated its disaster management plan, highlighting that terminal operations in Durban and Richards Bay had been affected.
“Transnet has begun assessments to establish the full extent of damage caused by the storm,” said a spokesperson.
">The Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) train service on the Natal Corridor (Natcor) line had been temporarily suspended due to obstruction of the railway tracks, TFR said.
King Shaka International Airport spokesman, Colin Naidoo, said the heavy rain had not affected the airport's operations.
"We have had people stranded and unable to get to the airport. This has led to long queues. However, we have had no major operational delays.”
