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The Cabanas hotel was submerged in ankle depth water and ice after flash floods wreaked havoc at the holiday destination on Saturday, said a Capetonian on holiday at the Sun City Resort.
Roderick Damons said he watched the scene unfold from a balcony as bathers were evacuated from the Valley of Waves at about 15:30, shortly before the storm landed.
"It was really bad; much worse than what we experience in Cape Town," he said. "It felt like a rolling ball of bad weather."
Most of the restaurants have been closed except for Mugg and Bean, where most of the guest lined up in an endless queue to get something to eat, he told News24.
Damons’ room, which is on the lake, was unaffected by the water damage. Those closer to the slopes were submerged, he said, and guests were asked to return home if they could, or were moved to the other hotels.
Sun International in a statement confirmed the resort had been affected by the massive storm and flash floods after the hail storm hit the North West region of the Pilanesberg and surrounding areas.
It caused substantial damage to the hotel rooms as well as the Sun Central family and entertainment precinct, it said.
Vehicles and buildings were damage and day visitors were immediately evacuated and bused away from badly affected areas.
The resort's emergency services were on the ground and assessing the extent of the damage.
Moses Kotane Local Municipality spokesperson Beauty Makganye said it appeared that Sun City was worst affected by the storm.
No flooding has yet been reported in the surrounding villages, she added.
