There was panic in KwaZulu-Natal after a hoax e-mail did the rounds, warning of a cyclone approaching the province as heavy rains, biting cold and strong winds battered the coastline.

Roofs were blown off houses, and homes were washed away in parts of the province. A motorist was killed when a car was swept into a river in Port Shepstone.

Provincial disaster management head Mthokozisi Duze said reports had been received of storm damage from across the provinces.

''Most of KwaZulu-Natal felt pressure,'' said Duze.

''On the South Coast, we had reports of trees falling into the roads, leaving them closed,'' he said.

There was considerable damage in Ndwedwe, north of Durban, where homes were washed away.

Though the SA Weather Service yesterday issued a warning of rainfall exceeding 50mm in KwaZulu-Natal, it emphasised that Cyclone Roberta, which was rumoured to be about to hit the province yesterday afternoon, would not make landfall.

"There is no tropical cyclone headed for the southern coastline," forecaster Luis Fernandes said.

Fernandes said it was unusual, but not unheard of, for KwaZulu-Natal to be hit by heavy rain at this time of year, and for there to be snowfall on the Drakensberg.

Daily highs of 16C in Johannesburg and cold in Mpumalanga and Limpopo were also not unheard of in early summer.

• Some Eastern Cape matric pupils missed school yesterday when their bus got stuck on the Ndlambula River bridge, in Lusikisiki, during heavy rains.

The bus was transporting pupils, including matrics writing exams, to the Zwelibongile High School. - Additional reporting by Sapa