No fewer than 9 individuals have died and eight individuals have been declared lacking after a flash flood swept away members of a church congregation performing rituals alongside the Jukskei River in Johannesburg, South Africa. 

The South African authorities introduced the church tragedy on Sunday.

Rescue staff who initially discovered two useless our bodies on Saturday, later found seven further corpses Sunday morning. 

Nonetheless, they disclosed that eight individuals had been nonetheless lacking as an ongoing seek for them was already underway.

In South Africa, water rituals are prevalent, notably close to the Jukskei River, the place a lot of spiritual individuals regularly assemble to carry out baptism and different purification rituals.

Robert Mulaudzi, the spokesperson for the Johannesburg Emergency Providers, disclosed residents had been warned a number of instances to train warning whereas performing their spiritual rituals because of the elevated rainstorms within the metropolis.

“Now we have been receiving lots of rain on town of Johannesburg within the final three months, and a lot of the river streams are actually full. Our residents, particularly congregants who usually practise these sorts of rituals, can be tempted to go to those river streams,” Mr Mulaudzi defined at a press briefing. 

He added, “Our message for them is to train warning as and once they conduct these rituals.”