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.
"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.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.