Parts of KwaZulu Natal (KZN) have been battered by heavy rains in recent weeks,  causing more than R3bn in damage to infrastructure and claiming lives. In early March a state of disaster was declared to unlock resources needed to help the province recover. 

On the ground, residents are struggling to get by. 

Sanelisiwe Mkhize (23), a student at Mangosuthu University of Technology in Umlazi lost most of her belongings when the backroom she lives in was flooded in last month’s heavy rains. 

“The rain started on Friday night, 28 February, and I was up all night. The water first came in from under the door. In the early hours of Saturday morning, the roof started leaking,” she tells Health-e News. 

“By the time I got out of bed, the water was up to my knees.” 

While Mkhize was able to salvage some of her textbooks, most of her clothes and food were washed away. Beyond the material loss, Mkhize says she is struggling with her mental health. 

“I’m so scared to sleep. Sometimes I stay up all night. I’m terrified of falling asleep and waking up drowning,” she says. 

Lingering fears 

Michel’le Donnelly, project lead for advocacy and awareness at the South African Federation for Mental Health, says that the psychosocial effects of flooding are felt by communities long after the water has gone.

“In 2013 British Red Cross asked 67 people who had experienced one or more severe flooding [events] to sum up their experience in only three words. Worry, loss, shock, fear, lack, panic, stress, community, damage and despair were the ten most frequent words,” says Donelly. 

Recent research shows that extreme weather events like flooding increase the risk of anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) as well as symptoms of depression. 

Picking up the pieces 

KZN is still experiencing heavy rains that have displaced communities and claimed tens of lives. 

These downpours have become an unfortunate feature in the province and some communities have been hit by repeated flooding since at least 2022, making it almost impossible to recover. 

“My room was completely wet, I have sinuses and I can barely sleep. And I’m worried about missing out on school,” Mkhize says. “We haven’t received any psychosocial support in the community, we were just told to go to the ward councillor’s office for soup and bread.”

Mkhize is back in her accommodation – only the roof has been fixed and she has not been able to replace the items that were lost. 

Mangosuthu University says counselling services are available on campus. 

”We have not received any referral of a student requiring temporary accomodation caused by the floods. However if we do, we will liase with relevant internal stakeholders for temporary support,” says Zama Sishi, the institution’s senior director of marketing and communications. – Health-e News