S.Africa's Ramaphosa vows to help victims of deadly floods, mudslides

Pixelplus Co

13/04/2022 13:02

JOHANNESBURG, April 13 (Reuters) - President Cyril Ramaphosa
pledged on Wednesday to help flood victims on South Africa's
east coast after heavy rains killed at least 45 people,
displaced dozens, swept away roads and disrupted shipping in one
of Africa's busiest ports.
    Ramaphosa spoke while visiting families who had lost loved
ones in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal province, including a family
with four children, after floods and mudslides ravaged homes on
Tuesday.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL5N2WA2IZ
    Africa's southeastern coast is on the front line of seaborne
weather systems that scientists believe global warming is making
nastier - and predict will get far worse in decades to come.
    "You're not alone...We'll do everything in our power to see
how we can help," Ramaphosa said. "Even though your hearts are
in pain, we're here for you." 
    The country's northern neighbour Mozambique has suffered a
series of devastating floods over the past decade, including one
last month that killed more than 50 people and injured 80.
    "You're battling one of the biggest incidents we've seen and
we thought this only happens in other countries like Mozambique
or Zimbabwe," Ramaphosa said. 
    A report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) in February warned that humanity was far from ready even
for the climate change that is already baked into the system by
decades of fossil fuel-burning and deforestation. It urged the
world to ramp up investments in adaptation.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2V30XA
    South African pulp and paper maker Sappi  SAPJ.J  said on
Wednesday its staff were unable to travel to work due to the
flooding and that the transport of goods had been disrupted,
impacting three mills. 
    South Africa's biggest logistics and freight operator
Transnet, which runs the port of Durban, gradually resumed
operations there on Wednesday after suspending them on Tuesday,
the public enterprises ministry said. 
    

 (Reporting by Tim Cocks, Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Nkobile
Dludla in Johannesburg
Editing by Mark Heinrich)
 ((tim.cocks@thomsonreuters.com;))