Heavy rains and floods sweep away South Africa

More rain and damaging winds are expected across South Africa's east coast, following days of severe storms and flooding in which nearly 400 people have died, the KwaZulu-Natal regional government warned on Friday.

Heavy rains and flooding first hit KwaZulu-Nata, which includes the coastal city of Durban, on Monday. Roads cracked and gave way to deep fissures, homes were destroyed, and stacks of shipping containers collapsed, news agency images showed.

Following a brief rain-free interval Thursday, the KwaZulu-Natal government said it had received a warning from the South African Weather Service that "disruptive rain" and "damaging winds" are forecast for the province from Friday until Saturday evening.

Described by the regional government as "one of the darkest moments in the history" of the KwaZulu-Natal province, the death toll from the storms has now risen to 395, spokesperson Lennox Mabaso told CNN on Friday.

Over 40,000 people have been affected by the floods, the regional government said in its statement.

National government ministers were due to make a visit Friday to the city of Durban, one of the most severely impacted areas with 355 recorded deaths across the eThekwini municipality, the KwaZulu-Natal regional government said.