Picture: Gallo Images/Die Burger/Jaco Marais
Cold temperatures and severe weather have wreaked havoc in parts of the country including the Western Cape province, where some residents have been affected.
On Monday, the Western Cape government and the Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC) convened a meeting to address the aftermath of the severe weather that struck over the weekend.
The intense conditions led to loss of shelter in informal settlements, localised flooding, fallen trees, power outages, and road closures due to snow or flooding in parts of the Western Cape.
The City of Cape Town, Overberg, Cape Winelands, and West Coast Districts were the hardest hit by the storms.
According to Anton Bredell, a member of the executive council (MEC) for Local Government, Environmental Affairs, and Development, the provincial government is collaborating with the City of Cape Town and the national Department of Human Settlements to address the “immediate needs” of those who have lost their homes.
“As always, our focus remains on the safety of our residents and the humanitarian support that they need,” Bredell said in a statement on Monday.
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Lwandle ward 86 councillor, Xolani Diniso said the weather has heavily affected residents of the informal settlement.
“There is no way to describe the situation… if I say it’s bad that would be an understatement. The situation is terrible. Our people have nowhere to go,” he told EWN.
Diniso mentioned that some residents had to sleep on beds that were floating on the water because of the flooding.
The South African Weather Service (SAWS) expects a series of cold fronts to continue bringing icy and wet weather to the province this week.
“Today will see the coldest daytime temperatures, and the next cold front with rain is expected to arrive on Tuesday, ” said SAWS on Monday.
“Between 10 and 20mm of rain is expected over the western parts, and between 40 and 60mm can be expected over the southern western mountains,” the Western Cape government’s statement further reads.
The Department of Water and Sanitation will monitor river and dam levels, which are expected to rise significantly this week.
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Bredell expressed concern over the anticipated rainfall as “saturated soil could lead to rock falls, landslides and flash floods”.
Meanwhile, SAWS has confirmed that strong gale-force winds are expected and has emphasised the high risk of runaway wildfires in the Garden Route district.
In addition, the PDMC will support several search and rescue operations to communities currently cut off from main access roads.
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