Several people are believed to have been killed by a twister which swept through parts of Mnquma local municipality on Saturday, injuring several others and leaving countless residents homeless in one village.
Amathole district municipality spokeswoman Noni Vuso yesterday confirmed only one death, but villagers spoke of another three deaths.
Vuso said two villages, Sirhosheni and Lahlangubo, in Hlobo administrative area in Ngqamakhwe under Mnquma municipality had been hit by the tornado.
“In Sirhosheni eight houses were damaged,” said Vuso adding that of the eight, four had been totally destroyed and would need to be rebuilt from scratch. In Lahlangubo, Vuso said 54-year-old man died when the wind sent him crashing into a fence.
She said the district municipality team was still working in Sirhosheni village.
But a resident of Sirhosheni, Mzuyanda Christian, told the Dispatch yesterday that three people in his village, among them two elderly residents, had died in the tornado.
He said a woman died when her house collapsed on her. An elderly man apparently died on his way home from a funeral.
The wind threw him into a donga, where he died.
Christian said 12 people had been injured with nine taken to Butterworth Hospital while about 10 people were left homeless. “I was attending a graduation ceremony when I got a call about this tragedy,” he told the paper.
He said the tornado had ripped through the village shortly before midday on Saturday.
The Dispatch was alerted to the devastation it caused in Hlobo via a Facebook post from former PSL referee Ace Ncobo.
When contacted yesterday, he said he had contacted both Amathole and Mnquma municipalities about what had happened.
Mnquma mayor Thobeka Bikitsha, through municipal spokesman Loyiso Mpalantshane, said they were saddened by the tragedy.
The mayor will reportedly visit the affected families today. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
Several die as twister hits Mnquma destroying homes
Amathole district municipality spokeswoman Noni Vuso yesterday confirmed only one death, but villagers spoke of another three deaths.
Vuso said two villages, Sirhosheni and Lahlangubo, in Hlobo administrative area in Ngqamakhwe under Mnquma municipality had been hit by the tornado.
“In Sirhosheni eight houses were damaged,” said Vuso adding that of the eight, four had been totally destroyed and would need to be rebuilt from scratch. In Lahlangubo, Vuso said 54-year-old man died when the wind sent him crashing into a fence.
She said the district municipality team was still working in Sirhosheni village.
But a resident of Sirhosheni, Mzuyanda Christian, told the Dispatch yesterday that three people in his village, among them two elderly residents, had died in the tornado.
He said a woman died when her house collapsed on her. An elderly man apparently died on his way home from a funeral.
The wind threw him into a donga, where he died.
Christian said 12 people had been injured with nine taken to Butterworth Hospital while about 10 people were left homeless. “I was attending a graduation ceremony when I got a call about this tragedy,” he told the paper.
He said the tornado had ripped through the village shortly before midday on Saturday.
The Dispatch was alerted to the devastation it caused in Hlobo via a Facebook post from former PSL referee Ace Ncobo.
When contacted yesterday, he said he had contacted both Amathole and Mnquma municipalities about what had happened.
Mnquma mayor Thobeka Bikitsha, through municipal spokesman Loyiso Mpalantshane, said they were saddened by the tragedy.
The mayor will reportedly visit the affected families today. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
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