Rescue workers were digging through collapsed homes and other buildings in coastal areas of KwaZulu-Natal province, where the death toll stood at 51, local officials said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa was visiting the affected region on Wednesday

“This situation calls on all of us to pull together as a country to reach out to affected communities,” he said in a statement.

On Twitter he praised the rescue services for their “rapid response” and said the floods and mudslides have displaced more than 1000 people.

The region has been hit by heavy rains for days, but authorities did not anticipate the extent of the downpour late on Monday, said Lennox Mabaso, a spokesman for the provincial Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs department.

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“As a result there was flooding and some structures were undermined and collapsed on people,” Mabaso said, adding some people were swept away by the water.

Multiple dwellings and houses collapsed in the mudslides, said KwaZulu-Natal Emergency Medical Services spokesman Robert McKenzie.

Some major roads in and around the port city of Durban were closed on Wednesday, local media reported.

Flooding also killed at least three people in the Eastern Cape province, state broadcaster SABC said on Wednesday.

Last week, 13 people were killed during an Easter service in KwaZulu-Natal when a church wall collapsed after days of heavy rains and strong winds.