East London was zapped relentlessly by lightning, buffeted by powerful swirls of wind, and, in thick humidity, hammered by rain squalls which had streets gushing with storm runoff.
The maelstrom hit the city soon after 9.30pm on Wednesday, heralding the arrival of a cold front.
Residents took to social media to report their wreckage and terror.
A video showing an East Coast home being battered by wind followed by a huge crash of lightning and the camera going awry, was flying on the internet.
The video was posted by Chintsa resident Carol Ackermann Swart just before 7pm on Wednesday, displaying the wild storm in all its glory.
The post read: “This just happened in Chintsa East, East London. The lightning struck us and shattered a window behind me. You can hear it break. Craziness.”..