TZANEEN: Disaster Management on high alert as Dineo approaches

This after the South African Weather Service issued a strong warning that the Mopani District municipal area will be among those affected by the looming tropical weather cyclone called Dineo.

‘As part of Disaster Management, the district municipality wishes to request community members to take precautions such as avoiding low-lying areas and not to attempt crossing or driving through any roads, rivers or bridges which may be flooded.  The Disaster Management Unit of the Mopani District Municipality has already put together a rapid response team comprised of various first respondents who will be on stand by to deal with any eventuality emanating from the cyclone,’ Mopani District municipal spokesperson, Niel Shikwambana said.

We expect landfall today just to the north of Inhambane, Mozambique. The trajectory of Dineo has change slightly from last night and will now be moving over the extreme northern parts of SA. Dineo has picked up some speed and is now moving WSW at 9,6 km/h. Dineo is still gathering strong and now has wind speeds of 111 km/h and wind gusts of 152,10 km/h with a pressure of 979 hpa. As soon as Dineo makes landfall today she will start to dissipate, nevertheless heavy rain will still be expected over Mozambique and the north eastern parts of SA.

The SAWS has issued a weather advisory for north eastern KwaZulu-Natal, the Low-veld of Mpumalanga and Limpopo for heavy rain and flooding with average wind speeds of 60 km/h from Thursday night to Saturday.

According to Eumetsat, Meteo France and Water underground, heavy rain can be expected over the following areas: Limpopo: Phalaborwa, Musina, Louis Trichardt, Tzaneen, Mokopane, Polokwane. KwaZulu-Natal: St. Lucia, Jozini, Vryheid. Mpumalanga: Kruger National Park, Nelspruit, Lydenburg, Skukuza, Barberton, Komatipoort.

TAKE NOTE: This forecast is subject to change as these systems are extremely hard to predict. It has change so much over the past 48 hours and could change again.

In the event of an emergency, community members within the Mopani district are requested to contact the Mopani Emergency Communication Centre at (015) 306-7000 or (015) 307-5555.

Precautions:

• If trapped in flooding in a vehicle, abandon it and climb to higher ground.
• In buildings, move valuables to a safe place above the expected flood level.
• Switch off electricity at the supply point to the building.
• In rural areas protect/relocate animals to a safe place on higher ground. Abandon your home immediately if evacuation is recommended, before access is cut off by flood water.
• NEVER drive on a road covered by water as you do not know how deep it is or if the road has been washed away. If the vehicle stalls, leave it immediately and seek higher ground. Be especially cautious at night when it’s harder to recognize flood dangers. Listen to the radio or TV for warnings and obey the instructions from disaster management officers.

Also read:

Dineo expected to bring heavy down pours this weekend

UPDATE: Dineo intensifies as NASA certifies her a cyclone