"The extreme weather has so far claimed five lives and many other people have been left homeless and destitute in the wake of the worst floods to hit KZN this year. The flood damage is running into millions of rands," Cogta said in a statement.

Cogta said that a significant number of communities had lost their homes and belongings and infrastructure had been seriously damaged.

"Government across all spheres is providing a co-ordinated response to the situation."

Cogta MEC, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, said departmental resources were running thin.

"Our resources have been stretched to capacity but we are coping thanks to our well-trained and well-equipped disaster management teams. All of them are doing sterling work on the ground, responding to every call for help."

Dube-Ncube and eThekwini mayor James Nxumalo are expected to visit Chatsworth, Verulam and Umlazi on Wednesday where flooding has led to fatalities and extensive damage to infrastructure.

Heavy rains hit KZN on Sunday and Monday resulting in flooding throughout Durban and the eThekwini region.

Police search and rescue officers and other emergency service personnel attended to a slew of incidents, with landslides and severe flooding reported at various informal settlements around the city.

- News24.com