Information reaching Kossyderrickent has it that Over 33 Masowe churchgoers and Zimbabweans got drowned and killed during baptism at Bramley Park along the Jukskei River, Alexandra.
Fourteen bodies have been recovered after flash floods swept worshippers during baptism at the notorious Jukskei river near Bramley/Alexandra. Search and rescue underway for missing people, JHB authorities confirm.
The number of Christians who have drawn in the Jukskei River has risen to 14. Rescue workers have been working tirelessly in retrieving the bodies that were swept away in Alexandra on Saturday night. Most of the bodies were found in Morningside area
The teams were interviewing people from the congregation to establish how many others were unaccounted for.
Religious groups frequently gather along the Jukskei River, which runs past townships such as Alexandra in the east of Johannesburg, for baptisms and ritual cleansing.
Johannesburg Emergency Services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said Sunday that officials had warned residents about the dangers of conducting the rituals along the river.
Some of the more than 30 congregants were standing on rocks in the river on Saturday when a torrent of water surged through, an eyewitness said.
The pastor was saved after he clung on to an overhanging tree branch as he was being carried away, the witness added.
Rescuers have now suspended the search of Johannesburg's Jukskei river.
There are still thought to be at least three people unaccounted for and the search operation, which involves the police and fire service as well as specialist aquatic rescue teams, will continue on Monday.
After having recovered two bodies on Saturday they found 12 more on Sunday, Robert Mulaudzi, spokesman for the City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services, told reporters.
Earlier he said that the authorities had warned people to be cautious about holding ceremonies in or near the river, which is notorious for flooding during South Africa's rainy season.
"Our residents, especially congregants who normally practice these kinds of rituals, will be tempted to go to these river streams. Our message for them is to exercise caution as and when they conduct these rituals."
Victor Ncube, who had been taking part in the church service, told local news station eNCA that he managed to pull five people out of the river who had been swept 100 metres downstream.
Others had been carried too far down the river for him to try to save them, he said.
“We have been receiving a lot of rain on the city of Johannesburg in the last three months, and most of the river streams are now full. Our residents, especially congregants who normally practice these kinds of rituals, will be tempted to go to these river streams,” Mulaudzi said during a news briefing.
“Our message for them is to exercise caution as and when they conduct these rituals,” he added.
It is understood 15 people are missing.
He told TimesLIVE nine people had been confirmed dead by Sunday afternoon.
One person was rescued and taken to hospital for treatment.
Mulaudzi said the search was called off at 10pm on Saturday due to the lack of visibility.
A multidisciplinary team including police search and rescue and emergency services are involved in the search.
Search and rescue operations by the EMS services began on Saturday and had to be stopped on Saturday evening at around 10pm due to safety concerns and resumed on Sunday morning.
EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi has confirmed that two people have been confirmed dead on the scene and one person was rescued and taken to receive medical attention at a nearby facility.
Mulaudzi also assured that the EMS team was hard at work trying to recover the other bodies that were allegedly swept away along the Jukskei river.
Nine bodies have been retrieved after 33 Masowe churchgoers from Alexandra who went for baptism in the Jukskei River in Morningside, Joburg drowned. The 9 bodies are among the 15 people who were swept away by water. Authorities are still on the scene searching for
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