JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced new measures Tuesday to combat gender-based violence following the killing of at least 11 women in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, since July.
The measures include an audit of women’s safety to be completed within 60 days, requiring local authorities across the country to identify dangerous and high-risk areas, including places with broken streetlights, abandoned buildings and poorly secured parks.
Ramaphosa also ordered police and the National Prosecuting Authority to review within 90 days unresolved cases involving murders, attempted murders, rapes and other gender-based violence cases, he said in a televised national address on Tuesday.
The recent spate of killings in Ekurhuleni has frightened residents, particularly after the 11th victim's body was discovered Sunday. The area remains on high alert while authorities investigate whether a serial killer or killers are responsible.
Ramaphosa said four suspects have been arrested. In some cases, police have identified persons of interest and collected forensic material, including DNA, blood samples, clothing, cellphones and cellphone records.
While police have not confirmed that the recent killings are linked, they have sparked fear and anger over the country's long-term femicide and violent crime problem.
“This cannot be accepted as a normal part of life in South Africa," said Ramaphosa. “We must confront an uncomfortable truth. What we have done has not been enough.”
He said the audits would be followed by funded plans to address the identified hotspots and backlogs in solving gender-based violence crimes.
South Africa recorded 5,427 homicides from April to July, according to the country's official crime statistics. Its femicide rate is among the highest in the world, according to UN Women, the United Nations agency for gender equality.
Ramaphosa called on men to lead the fight against gender-based violence, noting that most women who experience such violence know their attackers.
A 2022 study by a South African think tank found that more than 35% of South African adult women had experienced physical or sexual violence at some point.
“Women change their routes home, avoid going out at night and warn one another about dangerous places and dangerous men. We have placed the burden of male violence on women,” said Ramaphosa.
He said a high-level investigating team had been assigned to investigate the Ekurhuleni killings.
AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
Forensic investigators work at the site where the body of a woman was discovered on the outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
Forensic investigators work at the site where the body of a woman was discovered on the outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
In this photo provided by the South African Government Communications and Information Services (GCIS), South African President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the nation on new measures to tackle his country's scourge of femicide and violence against women and children as the country, in Pretoria, South Africa, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. (Jairus Mmutle/South African Government Communication and Information Services via AP)
PUERTO SAN CARLOS, Mexico (AP) — Hurricane Polo pummeled the Mexican state of Baja California Sur with powerful winds and rain as it made landfall Tuesday, leaving coastal areas flooded and streets littered with fallen trees.
The Category 2 hurricane struck land just south of Las Barrancas, Mexico, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Cabo San Lazaro with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph (175 kph).
About 700 people remained in shelters Tuesday. But they were expected to return to their homes, and no serious damage or deaths were immediately reported, according to authorities.
After the hurricane passed over the small fishing town of Puerto San Carlos on the Baja California peninsula, residents waded among downed trees through ankle-high water that flooded some homes. Seeing their roughened community largely intact brought relief to those who had prepared for the worst.
Shopkeeper Elbia María Bachomo, 40, picked through furniture strewn through her home. She and her three children had gathered their clothes quickly and left for a shelter Monday as water began flooding into their home.
Her husband was out on the water fishing for sardines when Polo hit. Bachomo said he was fortunate to escape alive.
“I thought, ‘Oh no, what are we going to come back to? We will be left with nothing.’ But we were lucky,” she said.
Polo was expected to produce 6 to 12 inches (about 15 to 30 centimeters) of rain across parts of Baja California Sur. By late Tuesday morning, a weakened Polo made a second landfall and moved inland in the Mexican state of Sonora after crossing the Gulf of California.
Forecasters predicted Polo would hit the Mexican mainland with life-threatening winds and flash floods. Sonora officials suspended all “nonessential” activities, including school, sports and nonessential work in the state capital and more than a dozen municipalities.
Meanwhile, the hurricane center reported Tropical Storm Rachel was moving parallel to Mexico's coast early Tuesday. The storm was about 265 miles (425 kilometers) southwest of Lazaro Cardenos with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (105 kph). It was moving west-northwest at 13 mph (20 kph).
Bands of rain continued to sweep across the U.S. Southwest on Tuesday, causing desert rivers to surge and usually dry arroyos to rage with floodwater. Nearly all of the region was under flood watches as the complex system of tropical weather — with Polo the main event — spread northeast from Mexico.
Forecasters warned north-central New Mexico including Albuquerque and Santa Fe could feel the brunt, with as much as 3 to 4 inches (about 8 to 10 centimeters) of rain through Wednesday and possibly more.
“Definitely looking at the chances for urban flooding,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Carter Greulich in Albuquerque. “Don’t drive through flooded roadways. Remain out of the arroyos, especially in our urban areas.”
The system made a brisk pass through Phoenix early Tuesday, dumping up to 2 inches (5 centimeters) of rain before tapering. North of the city, a truck was swept away in a wash in the New River area. The driver got out safely, Maricopa County sheriff’s officials said.
The rocky, desert area typically gets less than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain annually with little vegetation to soak it up, making flash flooding a perpetual risk.
Near Zion National Park in Utah, the East Fork of the Virgin River raged with chocolate floodwater seen carrying a shipping container downstream.
In the small town of Orderville, Utah, where flooding began Monday night, Sabrina Dubay was driving home when her partner called and told her to stay away.
“The river came in and swept around the entirety of our house,” Dubay said, adding that her partner told her, “We’re about to lose everything.”
A camper, snowmobile trailer, and other items from Dubay’s yard were swept away by the river. Neighbors and friends arrived to dig a trench around the house as the water rose around their home.
“It was coming in through our front doors,” she said.
Flooding also was reported in southern New Mexico. An unusually soggy September across the region set the stage: When the ground is saturated, rainfall has nowhere to go but run off.
“Runoff is likely going to start much quicker and lead to those flooding impacts quicker,” Greulich said.
Forecasters said the flood risk would move into parts of the central U.S. beginning late Tuesday and into Wednesday. Starting late Wednesday, widespread heavy rain was expected to hit the Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio areas. Life-threatening flash flooding was possible, with low-lying areas especially vulnerable.
Parts of west Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa were under flood watch through Thursday, with some areas expecting up to 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain.
In the central Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Nolo remained a dangerous Category 3 hurricane on Tuesday as it edged away from Hawaii after drenching parts of the Big Island over the weekend.
Pacific storm activity has been above average during what is already the peak of hurricane season. That pattern is consistent with El Niño years, when the Pacific often sees more tropical storms and hurricanes.
Nolo was about 270 miles (435 kilometers) south-southeast of French Frigate Shoals with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph (175 kph) moving north, at 9 mph (15 kph).
The hurricane was approaching Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, a marine conservation area, according to the hurricane center.
Janetsky reported from Mexico City. Eduardo Verdugo in Puerto San Carlos, Mexico, Julie Walker in New York, Mead Gruver in Fort Collins, Colorado, Mikella Schuettler in Phoenix, Sarah Raza in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Eugene Garcia and Gregory Bull in Hilo, Hawaii, contributed to this report.
Workers pull a boat to shore as Hurricane Polo approaches Puerto San Carlos, Baja California Sur state, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
People evacuate their homes as Hurricane Polo approaches Puerto San Carlos, Baja California Sur state, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
Residents are evacuated by the Army as Hurricane Polo approaches Puerto San Carlos, Baja California Sur state, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
People evacuate their homes as Hurricane Polo approaches Puerto San Carlos, Baja California Sur state, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
Workers pull a boat to shore as Hurricane Polo approaches Puerto San Carlos, Baja California Sur state, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)
