Heavy overnight rains caused havoc in parts of the city

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Joburg lashed by fierce storm Trees blown over, roofs blown off and a plane crashing into a block of flats - Jozi counts the cost of a thunderous high veld storm. December 19, 2006 By Anish Abraham A FAMILIAR scene greeted many Johannesburg residents this morning, with a high veld thunderstorm on the night of 18 December leaving trees overturned, houses roofless and streets strewn with debris. The scene in Yeoville was not so familiar, however, after a light aircraft crashed into a block of flats in that suburb. According to news reports, the pilot, who died in the crash, was thought to be the only person on board. There were no other fatalities, and the cause of the crash is being investigated. It is believed it could have been caused by the storm. There were no other injuries or fatalities as a result of the storm. Major structural damage occurred in the Orlando and Nancefield areas, where the roofs of 25 houses were blown off by the strong winds. "Disaster management was present in the area to help community members with the problems they faced," said Malcolm Midgley, the spokesperson for Johannesburg Emergency Management Services. He added that there were no reports of flooding in low-lying areas, which are usually a problem in informal settlements such as the ones along the Jukskei River in Alexandra and in Diepsloot. "There were no reports of rivers or streams bursting their banks. The only flooding reported affected the streets." According to Wayne Minnaar, the spokesperson for Johannesburg Metropolitan Police, the northern suburbs were not spared by the storm either. "There were more than 30 trees blown down during the storm, mainly in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs," he said. He added that there were no vehicle accidents caused by the poor driving conditions. Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za