The heavy rains have forced rescue workers to delay the search for the missing three-month-old baby who was  part of the 16 congregants swept away by flash floods in Juskei River. The Johannesburg Emergency services has called off the search due to the continuous rain that's making it difficult for them to proceed. Fifteen other bodies were recovered from the river during the course of the week but there was still no sign of the baby.

WEATHER DIDN'T PERMIT

Reports revealed that 33 congregants were attending a baptism ceremony when the tragedy happened.Some of them were lucky enough to make it out of the river alive. The Johannesburg EMS' Xolile Khumalo said they were meant to resume their search on  Monday morning but the weather did not permit.
"It was called off Sunday evening with the hopes of starting again on Monday  but seeing that it was  raining, the team could not go to the river. So, the search has to be called off. Same as today because it's still raining. Our last point of search was  around Katherine and Grayston Road in Sandton.'The search will only resume once the rainy weather subsides.

PASTOR STILL MISSING 

A missing person's docket has been opened for the pastor who presided over a baptism that claimed the lives of 16 congregants. The pastor in question has not been seen since he was saved from the flood by congregants and has allegedly gone into hiding. His wife said she had received threats from the community and is fearing for her own life. So tough is the situation, that she was considering her own life. Tefo Raphadu, a ward councillor from Alexander township said residents want to get to the bottom of the tragedy.The councillor added that if the pastor was an honest man and the tragedy was truly an accident, he should have been there to comfort the grieving families and support them.

BE CAREFUL WHEN DOING RITUALS

EMS have spent over a week searching through Joburg's rivers and managed to recover the bodies of missing congregants.
EMS' Robert Mulaudzi said  that he wasn't sure whether the pastor will be charged criminally, however, his ducking and diving is not working in his favour. "Maybe the message to our residents out there is to be cautious as and when they conduct these kind of rituals to make sure they exercise caution, they do it in a safe place, and ensure that the safety measures are considered so that we can be able to prevent incidents like these,' Mulaudzi added .