Body of 7-year-old KZN boy swept off low-level bridge found in river

The body of a seven-year-old boy who was swept off the Soweto bridge in Darnell, KwaZulu-Natal, while walking from school was found on Wednesday afternoon, according to IPSS Medical Rescue.

This as some parts of the province grapple with the effects of a tornado that ripped through New Hanover on Tuesday, leaving two dead, several injured and houses damaged.

The province is also bracing itself for more inclement weather which, as the eThekwini Municipality put it, could lead to severe flooding.

The IPSS, in a short statement said it, together with police divers and K9 search and rescue teams, returned to the bridge on Wednesday to continue the search after it was called off on Tuesday due to poor weather conditions and lightning.

“With the assistance of police divers from Durban search and rescue and Umhlali K9 search teams, a search of the Nonoti River was conducted and the boy’s body was recovered approximately 1km from the point where he went missing,” the statement read.

The extent of the severe storms and tornado that hit parts of the province is yet to be determined.

Severe thunderstorms are expected to continue on Wednesday afternoon in parts of KZN, while heavy rainfall, leading to localised flooding, is anticipated for Thursday and Friday.

Meanwhile, Eskom said on Wednesday it was fixing the infrastructure that had been damaged.

Technicians found that 15 networks in the Mpolweni, Dalton, Wartburg, Albert Falls and Swayimani areas had been affected, leaving around 15,000 people without power.

“Supply to about 5 000 customers was restored overnight and work is currently going on to restore power to the rest of the affected customers,” said Eskom’s Kwazulu-Natal spokesperson, Joyce Zingoni.

She added restoration would take longer than usual, as some structures and lines were down.

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