A City Under Ice: Storm Claims a Life and Paralyzes Parts of Tshwane

What began as another humid Highveld afternoon turned into a scene of destruction and tragedy across Tshwane on Monday. A severe hailstorm, carrying fierce winds and ice, ripped through the city, leaving a path of blocked roads, flooded homes, and heartbreaking loss.

In its wake, one person died in Bronkhorstspruit after strong winds and heavy hail caused a roof to collapse. The fatality marked a somber turn in what became a citywide emergency response operation.

A Multi-Region Crisis Unfolds

The storm’s impact was not isolated. Tshwane Emergency Services reported significant disruptions across five major regions, stretching from the northern to the eastern extremities of the city. Affected areas included:

• Region 2: Doornpoort, Wonderboom, Sinoville, Annlin, Montana

• Region 3: Danville, Daspoort, Atteridgeville, Lotus Gardens

• Region 4: Centurion

• Region 5: The K54 Road area

• Region 7: Bronkhorstspruit

Residents faced a cascade of problems: stormwater drains choked with hail, major and secondary roads turned into rivers of ice, localised flooding, and countless trees felled by the punishing winds.

Emergency Services Scramble Amid the Chaos

Nana Radebe-Kgiba, spokesperson for Tshwane EMS, confirmed that teams from the Emergency Services Department and Regional Operations Coordination are on the ground. Their mammoth task involves clearing roads, cutting away fallen trees, restoring access, and assisting residents with flooded homes and damaged infrastructure.

“Residents are urged to exercise caution when travelling, avoid waterlogged or hail-covered roads, and report emergency-related incidents, particularly flooding, to the city’s Emergency Services Command Centre,” Radebe-Kgiba stressed.

No Respite in Sight: More Storms Forecast

The clean-up effort begins under a darkening sky of further threat. The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued a Yellow Level 4 Warning for severe thunderstorms for Tuesday. The warning predicts continued localised flooding, large amounts of small hail, and strong, damaging winds across Gauteng, parts of Mpumalanga, and southwestern Limpopo.

The warning casts a shadow over recovery efforts, suggesting that the region is not yet out of the woods. For the residents of Tshwane, especially those in the hardest-hit areas, the coming hours will be a tense race against the next cloud build-up.

The storm is a brutal reminder of the raw power of Highveld weather. Beyond the startling images of ice-covered streets lies a deeper story of vulnerability, resilience, and a community now facing the arduous task of picking up the pieces while watching the sky with renewed apprehension.

{Source: Citizen}

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