(13 Jun 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mthatha, South Africa – 13 June 2025
1. Wide of South African president Cyril Ramaphosa walking through mud
2. Ramaphosa looking at wire cable
3. Flooding victims explaining how floods hit the area
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Cyril Ramaphosa, South African President:
“This is a catastrophe that I do believe could never have been foreseen because as I see it, much as the people are slightly closer to the river, but they are quite a distance from the river. Where we are standing now it’s almost like 500 to 600 metres from the actual river so for the river to have burst its banks in the way that it did, it’s quite catastrophic and it bears testimony to the challenge of climate change that we’re now experiencing.”
6. Ramaphosa and ministers climbing and ducking under fallen cable
7. Pan of house and vehicles damaged by flood
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Cyril Ramaphosa, South African President:
“Areas of the world where there are repeated disasters like we have in our own country, KZN (KwaZulu-Natal) and the Eastern Cape are always affected by various types of disasters. In the summer it’s huge downpours of rain causing floods that kill and destroy infrastructure. And now here in the Eastern Cape as well, in addition to the disasters they suffer in summer, now in winter, it’s not only snow and cold, it’s also floods that are now descending on the people of the Eastern Cape.”
9. Wide of Ramaphosa looking down at damaged bridge
10. Wide of house damaged by flooding
11. Rescue team and police officers at scene
STORYLINE:
South Africa’s leader visited the region where devastating floods have left at least 78 people dead in the country’s southeast as searches continued Friday for a fourth day and authorities said they expected the death toll to rise.
President Cyril Ramaphosa traveled to the town of Mthatha in Eastern Cape province, where the floods hit hardest when they began early Tuesday.
Ramaphosa attended a briefing by officials from the National Disaster Management Center and also visited a bridge where a school bus was washed away by flooding.
Six students, the bus driver and another adult onboard were confirmed dead, while four other schoolchildren were among the missing.
Ramaphosa’s visit came amid questions over authorities’ response to the disaster, which was caused by an extreme weather front that brought heavy rain, strong winds and snow to parts of the province. Forecasters warned about the bad weather last week.
The head of the provincial government said that the rescue effort was “paralyzed” in the first few hours of the floods, because of a lack of resources like specialized search and rescue teams, divers and K-9 dog units in one of the country’s poorest regions.
Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane said that the province of 7.2 million people has just one official rescue helicopter, which had to be brought from another city more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) away.
Ramaphosa defended the response.
The floods in the predawn hours caught many unaware, with victims washed away, along with parts of their houses and other debris, or trapped inside as water engulfed their homes.
The rain has stopped and floodwaters are subsiding.
Authorities say they expect more bodies to be recovered as rescue teams search the floodwaters and what is left of damaged houses and other structures to look for those still missing. Many children are among the dead.
Some South African coastal areas are vulnerable to extreme weather blowing in from the Indian Ocean and Southern Ocean.
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