Limpopo wants disaster area declared

Johannesburg - Limpopo has recommended that the flood-hit Vhembe district be declared a disaster area, it was reported on Wednesday.

Co-operative governance, human settlements and traditional affairs MEC Clifford Motsepe made the recommendation after hundreds of people were left homeless and several dead in floods over the past few days, reported The New Age newspaper.

District municipality spokesperson Matodzi Ralushai said: "The process of officially declaring the place a disaster area could be done any time now.

"People, including foreign nationals, are still at assembly points in Musina, where 200 houses collapsed."

Damage assessment was still underway.

Reports on the number of deaths as a result of the floods have ranged from 10 to 15, and the authorities have said they are still in the process of compiling all the information from affected areas.

- SAPA/News24