Storm displaces hundreds of families in South Africa

A heavy storm lashed the northeastern part of South Africa, leaving at least two people wounded and hundreds of families homeless, according to local media reports on Saturday. The storm hit two villages in the northeastern province of Limpopo from Friday night to Saturday morning, the state-run South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) quoted disaster-relief officials as saying. The injured, a nine-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy, were sent to hospital and remained in serious conditions. Many residents were displaced after gusts tore the roofs off their houses, according to the SABC. The storm caused power outages in a number of areas in the province, adding difficulty to the residents' efforts to fight the disaster. The local government had intensified relief operations, distributing emergency relief materials and demanding residents that they take necessary precautions to protect their lives and property. The disaster management department of the storm-affected regions had started to assess the damages, preparing for providing more assistance to the victims. On June 1, 2013, a storm hit the western city of Cape Town, claiming the lives of three people and leaving more than 2,000 residents homeless.