Deadly flash floods hit Johannesburg, South Africa

Heavy rain hit South Africa on November 9, 2016, causing devastating flash floods in country's capital Johannesburg, Gauteng province. Media reports on November 10 mention at least 6 people killed, dozens of vehicles swept away and houses damaged. At this time, there are still conflicting reports on the death toll. Further flooding is possible today, SA Weather Service warned.

An intense rainstorm caused 'flash flood beyond the capacity of our storm water systems,' Mayor Herman Mashaba said in a statement today.

The flash floods have caused chaos on the city's roads, with most of them cut off. According to police reports, the flooding was described as disastrous.

There are also unconfirmed reports of a tornado.

“A truck went into nine cars on the N3 and four people were killed. We’ve had to rescue hundreds of people from the water, we are hoping the waters will go down so that we can continue our efforts,” Joburg metro police department spokesperson Edna Mamonyane said.

“People have had to climb out of their cars and stand on roofs because the water was at window level. This is a bad, bad situation,” she added.

A private ambulance service, Emer-G-Med, said two people had drowned following flash floods on the N3 near Linksfield.

“Over 150 cars were affected with at least 10 pushed off the highway and down an embankment and completely submerged,” their spokesperson said.

Around 2 km (1.2 miles) of the highway was affected by flash floods.

At least 6 people have been killed and hundreds needed rescuing, emergency services said. "A 3-year-old girl is still missing in Alexandra," Mayor Mashaba added.

Intermittent rainfall and thundershowers are expected until Friday, November 11, 2016.  The SA Weather Service said more flooding could be a possibility later on Thursday.

Featured image: Severe weather, Johannesburg, South Africa on November 9, 2016. Credit: Alexius van der Westhuizen (via EUstormMap)