Signs of the catastrophic impact of the inclement weather since Sunday were clear on Monday after the raging storms of the long weekend.
The Theewaterskloof region was still in rescue mode after the storm’s catastrophic impact.
“At this stage, three fatalities have been reported,” TWK Municipal Manager Wilfred Solomons-Johannes said. “One person in Villiersdorp, another in Botrivier and a third from Vyeboom whose remains were later recovered by emergency teams.
“Our disaster response teams have been on high alert throughout the weekend and worked tirelessly throughout the night and day to assist residents in need.”
In the Cape Agulhas municipal area many homes were flooded and alternative housing had been made available.
“Most of our roads are flooded, and we call on all residents to stay off the roads,” a spokesperson said.
The state of the roads in the Overberg left many holidaymakers stranded. The R43 Gansbaai/Stanford was closed and people couldn’t get in or out of Gansbaai; the bridge at Stanford was still closed as was the R43 between Stanford and Hermanus. Clarence Drive was also closed to traffic and the Palmiet Bridge on the R44 remained closed. Assessments were expected to take place after the rain subsided.
Sir Lowrys’ Pass and a number of other roads have since been reopened but the N2 between Botrivier and Caledon remains closed as a large part of the roadway had been washed away.
Perhaps after all the flooding there is also something to be positive about. Just six years ago the Overberg faced a water crisis when Day Zero was imminent.
But today a different picture is painted with some dam levels exceeding 100% and rain predicted until the end of October. The dams in the Overberg are the fullest they have been in nine years.
“The Theewaterskloof Dam level is currently at 103,22% for the week of 18 September,” Wisane Mavasa, spokesperson for the Department of Water and Sanitation pointed out. “The dam has not reached this level of capacity for the previous nine years.”
She said that 10 years ago (September 2013) the dam level stood at 104,93%.
“It is interesting to note that a decline in water levels was visible from 2015 when the dam was at 75%, further declining to its worst level for the period of September 2017, at 28%, and then recovering to 95% only in 2019, which brought about an end to the previous drought.”
According to Overstrand Municipality, the De Bos Dam level is at 100,22%, the Buffelsrivier 103,34%, Kraaibosch 103,53%, Pearly Beach 59% and Koekemoer at Pearly Beach 100%.VAt the time of going to press the latest dam levels were not available, and the information published is from 18 September.
