KZN snowstorm claims 1 life as rescue efforts continue

A 39-year-old woman has tragically died after being exposed to severe cold overnight while stranded in traffic on the N3 highway due to heavy snowfall.

The woman had been travelling from Johannesburg to KZN when the taxi she was in became stuck near Mooi River last night.

The vehicle, along with others, was immobilised by the snow until traffic began to move again today.

The taxi later stopped at the Merrivale shopping centre in Howick for food and refreshments, where the woman collapsed.

Midlands EMS operations manager Roland Robertson says paramedics found the woman in a critical state of hypothermia upon arrival at the scene.

“While en route to the hospital, her condition rapidly deteriorated. Full resuscitation efforts were performed, but sadly, she was pronounced deceased upon arrival at the hospital,” says Robertson.

He urges the public to take cold weather warnings seriously.

We urge people not to underestimate the dangers of cold weather and to ensure they stay warm and safe at all times.

Meanwhile, snow-clearing efforts are ongoing along major routes across the province. Led by MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Siboniso Duma, teams have been working to reopen the N3 and other key roads blocked by snow.

By 17:00 today, progress had been made on several routes, including:

• R103 from Estcourt to Mooi River
• Kokstad to Underberg
• N11 between Amajuba and Volksrust.

“Some stranded motorists and trucks are now moving,” Duma says.

Since early this morning, I have been moving up and down the N3, co-ordinating teams from Pietermaritzburg and Ladysmith. The focus has been on rescuing stranded motorists and allowing disaster management teams to bring in much-needed relief.

Duma warned the public to avoid travelling on major snow-affected routes to ensure safety.

“Despite small pockets of success in terms of clearing the snow, people are requested to stay away from some of the major routes affected by the snow to remain safe,” he says.

As of this afternoon, disaster management teams continued to make gradual progress with rescue and recovery operations along the N3 Toll Route.

With the snowfall easing slightly, graders were slowly approaching the top of Van Reenen’s Pass, followed by emergency services and humanitarian relief workers, who were providing much-needed assistance to stranded road users.

However, authorities cautioned that conditions along the N3 Toll Route remain treacherous.

“Visibility along the route is poor as cold and wet weather conditions continue.

“The risk remains high for more snowfalls and the formation of black ice as temperatures drop into the night,” officials warned.

Road users have been urged to delay all travel to the region until authorities declare it safe.

For regular updates, motorists can follow @N3Route on X (formerly Twitter) or contact the 24-hour N3 Helpline on 0800 63 43 57 for emergency assistance.