PICS: Joburg's R24 reopens after floods cause havoc

Published Feb 22, 2017

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Johannesburg - The R24 West outside Eastgate Shopping Mall in Bedfordview was finally reopened a short time ago after being flooded for nearly 24-hours.

On Wednesday morning the route remained chaotic as motorists tried to make their way to work with only one lane open and cars struggled to drive through the road, driving slowly one at a time as they splashed through the water.

Members of the Ekurhuleni Emergency Management Services (EMS) and Disaster Management Services were searching fervently to find blocked drains so that the road could be cleared.

Several men were at the bottom of the embankment poking the underwater pavement with a special stick in a bid to look for the blocked drains which were not allowing the water to dissipate.

An Ekurhuleni EMS member who asked to remain anonymous said that earlier in the morning an elderly woman had driven straight into a part of the road that was deeply flooded and was forced to abandon her vehicle which remained floating in the water.

"We managed to use the fire engine and tow truck to get it out, she came back a bit later to pick up the vehicle," he said.

When The Star left the scene the search was still ongoing, however later in the day Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) spokesperson Kobedi Mokheseng (corr) said the teams had managed to find and unblock the drains.

"The road was reopened at about 11:45 this morning after the drains were opened and the water flowed through them. A pump was also used to drain the remaining water," he said.

In a separate ER24 spokesperson Werner Vermaak (corr) said paramedics were kept busy during the night attending to several reports of flooded roads, vehicles swept into rivers and stranded motorists.

"Shortly before midnight, paramedics were called to the scene of a water rescue incident in Vanderbijlpark.

"Upon their arrival, paramedics found police rescuers already in attendance. Bystanders, believed to have been on the back of the bakkie, explained to rescuers that their vehicle was swept down the river. An adult and a young child was still on the back of the bakkie," he said.

Vermaak explained that rescuers were unable to access the two occupants and later managed to use a Jetski to reach them.

"Both were picked up from the vehicle and taken back to safety. ER24 paramedics assessed the man and child, but found that they were only in shock. No one was transported to hospital from this scene," he said.

ER24 and Ekurhuleni EMS urged and reminded motorists to avoid entering flooded areas and not to attempt to cross flooded low water bridges.

"An alternative route should be used and motorists are encouraged to alert local authorities of areas that are flooded," Vermaak said.

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