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發表於 2006-8-17 14:07:12
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小睡特別提示 南非雪災會對商品市場產生影響麼?歡迎討論指教
Snow, rain strand motorists in S. Africa
Wed Aug 16, 2006 12:28 PM GMT
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Heavy rains and snow fell in South Africa's southern region on Wednesday, blocking roads and spurring rescue efforts to save stranded motorists.
Cars and trucks littered snow-dusted roads in the northern part of Eastern Cape province, while steady rains made driving conditions in some rural areas perilous. A cold front sweeping through the area complicated rescue efforts.
"The snow has formed hard ice. It's terrible, it can't break," Tshepo Machaea, a spokesman for Arrive Alive, which monitors the safety of roads throughout South Africa, told the SAPA news agency.
"Disaster teams are still busy with graders trying to break the ice, but we don't know how long it will take.
No deaths were reported, although authorities said they feared that roofs of houses and businesses could collapse under the weight of the snow in several towns in the Eastern Cape.
A number of roads, including one connecting the Eastern Cape to the mountain kingdom of Lesotho, were closed. Motorists were advised to use caution when driving in the region and to be wary of sudden rock falls in mountainous areas.
The wintery blast -- not out of the ordinary for southern Africa at this time of year -- was the second significant storm to hit the region this month.
A cold front two weeks ago brought gale winds and rough seas along the coast and snow to the interior of the country as well as Lesotho, killing a handful of people and requiring the South African military to help rescue dozens of stranded motorists.
The South African Weather Service, however, said that conditions late Wednesday morning were improving in many of the areas hard hit by the latest storm.
"It's cleared up and it is sunny in the western half of Eastern Cape," said Deon van der Mescht, a meteorologist with the weather service in Port Elizabeth, a coastal city in the province. Van der Mescht added that further snowfalls were still possible in a few scattered regions. |
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