Severe weather and flooding kills 8 in South Africa

[Mark]

October 24, 2012 – SOUTH AFRICA - South Africa has been pounded by some hazardous weather over the past few days. The weather first turned severe on Thursday in the southwest of the country. 32 hikers had to be rescued after being trapped by heavy rain on the Whale Trail near Bredasdorp. The worst of the weather struck in the southeast of the country. According to provincial disaster management officials, eight people, including a five-year-old boy, died in the severe weather in the Eastern Cape. The deaths occurred whilst people were attempting to cross streams or when their vehicles were washed away. The flooding was so severe, that it even washed away a section of the main N2 highway, which links Grahamstown to Port Elizabeth. As well as torrential rain, the weather system also delivered large hailstones. Some reports say that the hail was as big as tennis balls in some parts of Johannesburg. The ice smashed into cars and broke windows of many homes and businesses, and caused a number of traffic accidents. The severe weather is due to a low pressure which is still delivering widespread thunderstorms across many parts of the country. The treacherous conditions are expected to continue across southern parts of the Western and Eastern Cape during Monday, before clearing away from the southern regions on Tuesday. –Al Jazeera

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