Father tells how toddler was swept away by floods in South Africa

With his three-year-old daughter gently but firmly clasped to his left side‚ Shadrick Chauke tried to escape the raging waters of a swollen Jukskei River by climbing a tree.

But the branch he was holding on to snapped. Little Everite slipped from his grasp and was swept away by the torrent. She disappeared and I screamed to my wife and neighbours to try and save her‚ but the water was very strong and flowing very fast‚” said Chauke.

“It was raining hard and it was almost dark and neighbours were also trying to save their possessions and their lives. Nobody paid attention to what was happening to my daughter‚” he said.

Shadrick had climbed the tree to escape from the water which had engulfed his shack near the Jukskei in Alexandra‚ in northern Johannesburg‚ during flash floods on Wednesday evening.

The search for Everite continued on Thursday.

Acting Gauteng Premier (South Africa) Paul Mashatile visited the area and consoled “the Chauke family who lost their daughter . . . in the #flashfloods”.

The City of Joburg had previously paved large sections of the river’s bank in an effort to discourage people from erecting shacks there.

But Emily Thomas‚ from Gift of the Givers‚ the aid organisation which delivered tents and food in the area on Thursday after responding to a call from the City of Joburg‚ said the banks of the Jukskei were a recurring problem during rainy periods.

“We’ve been coming here year after year with various disasters.”

She said people were moved from the area regularly‚ but were replaced with new shack-dwellers. Musa Mabolo lost all her belongings‚ including her identity document‚ when the floods swept through Alex.

“I have been staying here since 1998 and I have never seen such floods‚ normally the water flows within the stream‚ but last night it was something else‚” she said.

Mashatile said affected families will be relocated while authorities assess the damage. Flash floods affected parts of Johannesburg last week, leaving a trail of destruction with houses, shacks and even vehicles damaged.

There were also a number of deaths recorded. — TMG Digital/Sowetan