Cape Town – The uMngeni Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal has set up a disaster centre in Howick to assist motorists trapped in the snow since Friday.
The center provides hot meals, drinks, and shelter, IOL reported.
Mayor Chris Pappas said that relief efforts are also being extended to those stuck on the N3.
“Any person stuck in the Midlands area who can get to the centre will be assisted. Teams will also start brining relief to those who cannot get out of their vehicles on the N3,” the report quoted Pappas as saying.
Heavy snowfall, dubbed “Snowtember”, has caused chaos on the N3 Toll Route between Estcourt and Harrismith, leaving motorists stranded due to hazardous conditions, including “black ice”.
Rescue efforts have been hampered as helicopters are grounded and tow trucks immobilised, The Citizen reported.
URGENT TRAFFIC UPDATE⛔ https://t.co/mVil5Vmr2Y #ArriveAlive #Snow @KZNTransport @N3Route @Dotransport @TrafficRTMC @SAPoliceService
Due to heavy snowfall, ice, and rain, multiple roads in KwaZulu-Natal are closed or experiencing slow traffic.
ROAD CLOSURES:
– R74 (Harrismith… pic.twitter.com/xUmSWHDsDm
— Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) September 21, 2024
Reports indicated that elderly people and children were without food, water, and medication in freezing temperatures.
Various roads and border posts are closed.
According to AFP, emergency services were working to reach people in their vehicles but it was still not clear how many were affected and in what condition they were, N3 Toll Concession operations manager Thania Dhoogra told the ENCA broadcaster.
“Emergency services have been working flat out through the night. They have been attempting to reach as many roads users as they can,” Dhoogra said.
Blankets and meals had been delivered to some stranded motorists, the government of the KwaZulu-Natal province said in a statement at midday.
Trucks had been parked on the side of the road since Friday, Road Traffic Management Corporation communications officer Simon Zwane told AFP. “Buses travelling between provinces have been stuck at petrol stations for around seven hours,” he said.
Motorist Muhammad Goolam told the Newzroom Afrika channel that he had spent the night in his car with his children outside the town of Harrismith, around 270 kilometres (170 miles) southeast of Johannesburg.
In light of the persistent snowfall at Sani Pass port of entry, where the snow depth has reached 6 cm, the conditions leading to the Lesotho port have become hazardous underfoot.
Given the situation, @TheBMA_SA and stakeholders operating at the port, have made the decision to… pic.twitter.com/BkGPxYLSHQ
— The Border Management Authority SA (@TheBMA_SA) September 21, 2024
“Over 13 hours, food supplies out, I don’t see us managing to drive out of here without any assistant from emergency personnel,” he said.
Some areas had seen up to two metres (six feet) of snowfall, the Arrive Alive road safety campaign said in a post on X.
South Africa’s Border Management Authority said it had closed three border posts with the kingdom of Lesotho as “the current conditions pose a significant danger.”
More snow was expected with second-highest orange warnings in place for several parts of the country, South African Weather Services forecaster Luthando Masimini told AFP. “It’s an extreme case,” he said.
Away from the danger areas, the rare phenomenon drew people excited to see the snow. Justin Nadasem Baker drove for three hours from Johannesburg with his family to Warden, about 50 kilometres from Harrismith.
“It was a three-hour drive. We are excited. It has been many, many years since we saw snow,” he told AFP.
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Picture: X/@_ArriveAlive
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
Additional reporting by AFP
