After intense rainfalls in South Africa, at least 45 people were killed.

Officials stated that homes were destroyed and roads were swept away by the tsunami in Durban, an east coast city, on Tuesday.

KwaZulu-Natal’s provincial government confirmed that there were still many people who died.

The coast areas of the province were expected to see heavy rains until the evening.

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Officials said that disaster management teams were helping to evacuate people from areas where there had been mudslides or buildings that had fallen.

Many homes were destroyed and roads collapsed, which impacted transportation and rescue operations.

Some people carried salvaged possessions to safer locations as the muddy waters gushed through streets.

Heavy rainfall events could be more frequent

In an online briefing, boss Andre de Ruyter stated that the rains in KwaZulu–Natal also caused a dam to flood beyond its capacity. This made it impossible for Eskom to run a hydroelectric generator.

Transnet, South Africa’s largest logistics and freight operator, has halted operations at its Durban port terminals due to flooding.

In January, floods in East London killed at least 10 people, and hundreds were left homeless by the flooding.

Scientists suspect that climate change may have contributed to the increasing droughts and floods along the eastern coast.

Although the South African Weather Service did not attribute heavy rains to climate change, they said that such weather could become more frequent.

The Department of Environment created a plan to help South Africa adapt to climate change in 2019. This included strengthening its readiness to respond to natural disasters more quickly and helping victims recover.

According to the weather bureau, heavy rainfall in KwaZulu–Natal will be significantly lessen by tomorrow. However, heavy rain will continue on Friday and last until Monday.