Ramaphosa toured the disaster zone and met with survivors in the region, where thousands of houses, roads, schools and health facilities were left caked in mud after being completely submerged in floodwaters, leaving many people with nothing in one of the poorest parts of the country.

Rescuers were going door to door searching for bodies or possible survivors, as people got stuck inside their homes when the water rushed in during the night. Some managed to escape to their roofs, where they waited long hours for help.

Ramaphosa visited the site where a school bus was swept away, killing at least six children and three adults. Four of the children were still missing.

He also spoke with a woman who lost her mother and at least two of her young nephews. The woman was sobbing as the president listened to her story.

"This is a catastrophic disaster which is caused by climate change," said Ramaphosa, who estimated the flood waters had reached more than four metres (13 feet) high.

"During winter, we expect cold as well as snow here in the Eastern Cape. Now that we are confronting floods, this goes to show the severity of the issue of climate change."

Snow and heavy rainfall are common during winter in South Africa, but coastal parts of the country were hit by "unprecedented" weather conditions, Ramaphosa said on Thursday.

According to the Green Climate Fund, the country is highly vulnerable to the impact of climate variability and change, which increases the frequency and severity of extreme weather.

The death toll from the floods, which officials said stood at 78 on Thursday, could still rise.

Earlier Friday, bodies were still being retrieved from a nearby river.

- 'The furniture was floating' -

The area worst hit by the floods and subsequent landslides was the city of Mthatha, about 800 kilometres (500 miles) south of Johannesburg.

The city is near the village of Qunu, birthplace of Nelson Mandela, the late anti-apartheid hero and former president.

The South African Red Cross Society, which sent aid to the Mthatha area, told AFP at least 3,500 households had been affected, with many people sheltering in community halls.

AFP journalists on Thursday saw a rescue team pull four bodies, some of them children, from a one-roomed house in the late afternoon. The surrounding area was strewn with debris and locals sobbed as they watched the recovery.

"When we came out of the house, the water was above the knee, all the furniture inside was floating," Sopiseka, a survivor, told AFP.

Ali Sablay, a spokesperson for disaster response charity the Gift of the Givers Foundation, said the number of people requiring assistance could increase "dramatically".

"The homes are fragile, they can collapse anytime. Food is contaminated, so people need to be evacuated," said Sablay.

At least 20 health facilities and 58 schools were damaged in Eastern Cape province, according to local authorities.