Amman, Jan. 18 (Petra) - South Africa’s National Disaster Management Centre on Sunday declared a "national disaster" after flash floods destroyed homes and killed dozens of people in the country’s northeast.

Authorities are continuing search-and-rescue operations and recovering bodies, according to Agence France-Presse, as floodwaters begin to recede in some areas. Thousands have sought shelter in neighboring Mozambique.

For weeks, countries in southern Africa have been battered by heavy rainfall and storms, resulting in the deaths of more than 30 people in South Africa’s northeastern provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga.

In Mozambique, rivers have overflowed, inundating entire neighborhoods in several areas and forcing thousands to flee, while efforts to reach survivors sheltering on rooftops and in trees have been hampered.

According to official data, at least eight people have died in Mozambique since Dec. 21, though the toll is expected to rise as more people are reported missing.

//Petra// AF

18/01/2026 22:02:53