The Toyota plant in Durban
"Unprecedented flooding" arising from a massive storm which lashed the KwaZulu-Natal coast on Tuesday has closed Toyota Motors South Africa’s (TSAM’s) manufacturing plant in Prospecton, south of Durban.
The plant is located near the old Durban airport, an area heavily affected by Tuesday's storm.
TSAM president and CEO Andrew Kirby confirmed that there was significant damage to the Prospecton facility, including the buildings, equipment, as well as motor vehicles on the line.
“Our first priority was to ensure the safety of our employees and I’m pleased to report that there were no injuries resulting from this morning’s downpour,” he noted.
“Production for now has been halted at the facility for the rest of today and tomorrow to enable us to quantify the extent of the damage. We’ll then reassess the situation again on Thursday and decide if we can resume normal manufacturing.”
TSAM manufactures the Corolla, Corolla Quest, Hilux, Fortuner and Quantum in Durban. It also assembles selected Hino truck products at the facility.
The Fortuner, Corolla and Hilux are exported to markets such as Europe and the rest of Africa.