35 houses damaged as storm rips into Durban

Durban - At least 35 houses have been damaged in the Welbedacht area in Durban as the city was battered with strong winds and heavy rain on Tuesday, the KwaZulu-Natal emergency services said.

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EMS spokesperson Robert Mckenzie said a girl of about 10 was injured by falling debris and was treated by paramedics for serious injuries.

"Amazingly the baby the child had been holding at the time, was not injured."

Mckenzie said EMS paramedics had also assessed several other patients for minor injuries.

"The damage was to formal houses, some that were still being constructed. The damage varied from tiles being blown off too entire roofs being blown off which intern damaged the walls of the house when the roof was blown off, causing substantial damage to some buildings," he said.

"According to the local councillor all the community members have been accounted for and no one is missing or unaccounted for at this stage."

Support agencies including the Durban fire department, the police, Durban disaster management officials and KZN EMS managers have gathered to assess the damage and to assist affected people. Alternative accommodation is the first priority, Mckenzie said.

In a separate incident, but still storm related, two people were lucky to escape with only minor injuries after an old tree which had been blown over by strong winds on the M1 in Chatsworth, fell on the roof of their car.