Durban - The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government will ask the national government to declare areas of the province hardest hit by the inclement weather in the past week disaster areas.
Co-operative governance spokesman Lennox Mabaso said in a statement on Wednesday the provincial cabinet had resolved to call for the assistance of the national government.
The death toll in the province has now risen to 14 dead, with a further four deaths reported in the Dassenhoek area of Durban.
Mabaso said the provincial government could still not put a figure on the damage caused by the heavy rains, flooding and hail storms.
“You can understand the magnitude of the problem when in Ladysmith alone you have 3500 homes affected by the hail,” he said.
The worst affected areas were Ladysmith, the Ugu district on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast and parts of Durban.
“The damage will escalate to millions of rands. We do not at this stage have the accurate figure, but once all the emergency relief and rescue efforts have been conducted we will commence with the process of quantifying the damage.”
At least 28 people have been killed due to heavy rains in KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga since Sunday. Three deaths have also been recorded around Mahikeng in the North West since Tuesday, due to torrential rain. - Sapa