Malalane - Mpumalanga police divers helped rescue a farmworker who spent five hours clinging to the branch of a tree on Thursday morning following floods in the Nkomazi area.
Samuel Malatjie, 24, was rescued after attempting to cross a river in Phiva village at around 5am.
"The farmworker was going to work when he fell into the overflowing river. His colleagues called police after failing to rescue him," said Tonga police spokesperson Sergeant Mzwandile Nyambi.
Nyambi said the man was taken to hospital for medical evaluation.
Provincial MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Madala Masuku said two people died in the floods in Nkomazi on Thursday.
He said in Bushbuckridge 130 schoolchildren also had to be airlifted to safety after attempting to cross rivers on their way to school.
"Those kids were airlifted and are all safe," said Masuku at a press briefing in Mbombela.
Masuku added that 150 families from five municipalities in the province were affected by the heavy rains by Thursday morning.
"I have established a joint operation team which consists of four departments to do a full assessment on resources that will be needed immediately," he said.
He said affected municipalities include Bushbuckridge, Mbombela, Mjindi, Thaba Chweu and Nkomazi.
"Our most flood damage is in the Nkomazi area where people lost their houses and their properties were left drenched in water," he said.
Masuku said the national disaster team would be called to assist if the situation worsened.
Department spokesperson Simphiwe Kunene said 14 families had to be relocated following heavy rains that lashed Mpumalanga's deep rural Nkomazi area this week.
An assessment by Cogta officials found that 30 houses were damaged in a number of villages south of Malalane.
Most schools were also unable to open.
Cogta head of department David Mahlobo and Nkomazi mayor Thulisile Khoza helped hand out food parcels and blankets in affected villages such as Tonga, Block A, B, C , Masibekela, Kamaqhekeza, Driekoppies, Mangweni, Steenbok, Naas, and Sibange.
He said water treatment plants at Ntunda, Sibange, Langeloop and Masibekela villages were badly damaged.
