'Ennerdale tornado ripped roof off my house'

Residents in Ennerdale have been trying to salvage whatever possessions they can after a tornado struck the area. [VIDEO and PICS]

Johannesburg - Residents in Ennerdale, south of Johannesburg, were on Tuesday morning trying to salvage whatever possessions they could after a tornado struck the area on Monday afternoon.

On Tuesday morning in extension 8, where the damage was the worst, residents were seen digging though debris, including broken cement and bricks from the damaged houses and perimeter walls, as well as pieces of corrugated iron from roofing.

One of them was 65-year-old Lydia Shabalala who was with her teenage grandson when her house was struck by the tornado.

She explained that rain started to fall in their area in the afternoon but kept subsiding.

However, when the stormy weather hit again for the third time she heard the wind violently blowing through and when she looked out her window, she saw her neighbour's roof flung through the air.

"I ran outside and saw a big black cloud with a tail at the bottom,” she told The Star.

Soon afterwards, the roof of her house was also ripped off, with parts of the walls of the house collapsing and rain flooding her house.

"My grandson and I had to sleep by my son in Lenasia."

Tshabalala added that the weather also shattered the windscreen and other windows of her car as well as her neighbour's.

On Tuesday morning residents banded together to conduct clean up operations, including at Tshabalala's house.

She said that her furniture, wardrobes, beds and clothing were damaged and that everything had to be removed from the house as they wait for a new roof to be put in.

Joburg Emergency spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said scores of houses in the area where damaged.

"Fifty three houses have been assessed, most of had them damaged roofs and collapsed walls."

He added that the tornado blew away roofs of three houses in the area.

One person was also injured during the extreme weather phenomenon and was taken to hospital, Mulaudzi said.

#EnnerdaleTornado pic.twitter.com/ELsmc45zNw

— Londi Khambule (@Londi_khambule) November 15, 2016

Heavy weather conditions hit parts of Gauteng since last week, with about seven people being killed in flash floods.

Meanwhile in July, several homes and businesses were damaged when another tornado tore through Tembisa in Ekurhuleni.

karishma.dipa@inl.co.za

The Star