Catastrophic floods in South Africa have left 51 dead and got over thousand people from their residence, according to an updated toll issued Wednesday as President Cyril Ramaphosa flew to the deluged region.

Heavy rains had lashed the country’s southeast, bulldozing houses and ravaging infrastructure in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces.

Speaking to the victims in Amanzimtoti community in Durban, following return from emergency African Union discourse in Egypt on the crises in Libya and Sudan, Ramaphosa said “there are more than 1,000 people who are now displaced.”

He raised concerns about Free State province north of KwaZulu-Natal, saying that continuing downpours there were causing “risky situations”, and vowed that the government will set aside emergency funding to help survivors rebuild their lives.

Fifty-one people have been confirmed dead so far, although local media have given a toll as high as 54, rising from 33 on Tuesday.

Rescuers on Wednesday continued to comb debris, desperately looking for people feared trapped by landslides.

Emergency witnesses reported bulldozed buildings and flooded roads, blocked sewer lines and toppled electricity pylons.

For safety reasons, schools and some businesses were shut in the affected areas.

South African military personnel have been sent out to help rescue and evacuation efforts.

The South African Weather Services warned that more heavy rain and gale force winds were anticipated, which could threaten low-lying bridges and roads.