Two more cold fronts to hit Western Cape on Saturday and Sunday

The Western Cape Government said it has approached the National Disaster Risk Management Centre for a provincial disaster classification as the province continues to be lashed by turbulent weather.

On Friday, the MEC for Western Cape Local Government, Environmental Affairs, and Development Planning, Anton Bredell, said the Joint Operations Centre (JOC) meeting revealed that two more cold fronts are expected to make landfall on Saturday, July 13, and Sunday, July 14.

The meeting also reported that in the City of Cape Town,100,000 people have been affected so far, and the weather conditions damaged 33,000 structures.

“We have a huge humanitarian situation to deal with, and all authorities are working together to address this. We have approached the National Disaster Management Centre for a provincial disaster classification, and expect an announcement on this soon,” Bredell said.

Western Cape Premier Alan Winde has urged national authorities to expedite this process.

“We desperately need additional resources to sustain our disaster management operations. Assessments still need to be finalised and from our side, as the Western Cape government and our stakeholders in the province, we are working flat out to complete this process I want to again thank all stakeholders for everything they do in the service of our citizens, particularly the most vulnerable,” Winde said.

The South African Weather Service (Saw) confirmed a Level 6 warning for disruptive rain in Drakenstein, Stellenbosch, and Witzenberg for the weekend.

“According to the predictions, we can expect between 60 to 100mm of rain in the mountainous areas. Our dams and rivers are full, and our catchments are saturated, so any additional rainfall could lead to flooding, mudslides, and rock falls. We repeat our call to the public to stay safe, avoid unnecessary travel, and keep informed through reputable news outlets,” Bredell said.

Citrusdal is currently cut off from all access routes, and authorities are attending to the situation. Provincial traffic services are allocating additional resources to provide support.

The Department of Water and Sanitation reported that dam and river levels continue to rise.

• The Breede River at Swellendam is currently flowing at more than 1000m³ per second, which is at a level where the river could start to breach its banks. Larger volumes of water is expected to come down the river in the coming days.
• The Clanwilliam Dam in the Olifants River is currently at 107%, and the controlled release of 1100m³ per second is being implemented. Downstream communities need to take note and exercise caution in the coming days.
• In Laingsburg, the Floriskraal Dam is at 118%, and communities in the immediate downstream vicinity have been alerted of the risk of flooding.
• The Berg River Dam is currently at 103%, and a flow volume of 396m³ was measured at Paarl in the Berg River this morning.
• The Theewaterskloof Dam is currently 90% full.
• Voëlvlei Dam is at 79% capacity.

Bredell thanked all stakeholders and officials who worked tirelessly this past week to help those gravely affected by the adverse weather conditions.

“Our focus will remain on keeping people safe until the severe weather has passed,” he said.

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