By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Western Cape has been hit by a series of severe weather-related incidents, affecting informal settlements and formal housing areas and caused outages in a number of areas.
“Emergency services have assisted four persons trapped in a house in Strand and evacuated them to Strand Fire station. The roof was blown off a private property in the CBD, while a NUTEC dwelling in Hout Bay was also damaged due to wind,” said Disaster Risk Management spokesperson Charlotte Powell, adding that assessments will determine exact damage.
According to Powell, informal settlements in Shuku-Shukma, Sir Lowry’s Pass Village, Rasta Camp, Riemvasmaak, 7de Laan Sandvlei Macassar, Old Faure Driftsands, Mfuleni, and Bellville South have been heavily affected.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde called on people not to “take any chances”.
“Try to delay your traveling and check through your local law enforcement officers or local municipalities before you venture out. I want people to be safe.”
? Please stay safe, avoid unnecessary travel on our roads, follow instructions from our officials, and contact emergency services if necessary.
All our teams are on the ground working non-stop – thank you from all of us ??️#CapeStorms pic.twitter.com/n7KXLdYBhE
— Premier Alan Winde ?? (@alanwinde) September 25, 2023
During a briefing on Monday, Anton Bredell, Western MEC for local government, environmental affairs and development planning, warned that the next 12 hours would be “very difficult”.
“All the teams are on standby, and the mopping up will need to happen, but we first need to get through the storm.”
Bredell said the Overberg areas – Hermanus, Stanford, and Gansbaai, were “hit very hard”.
“Until now, they are sending rescue teams to Struisbaai to support people there.”
Bredell said 11 people were rescued in Stanford and seven families in Grabouw.
16 September 2023
Gordon’s bay
Western Cape
South Africa ??#SA911 pic.twitter.com/ziKqwHDhJJ— ?SA911 (@JustdoitZee) September 16, 2023
“There was also a boat that overturned and the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) managed to save the three people on that boat.”
Road closures remain in place in Theewaterskloof Municipality. All major routes leading to Cape Town and Caledon remained closed to traffic and there were currently no detours available along the N2 in the area as those gravel roads had also been flooded.
Cape Town – N2 Route: #Flooding between Botrivier and Grabouw #CapeStorm pic.twitter.com/3Vq1sgVXF8
— TrafficSA (@TrafficSA) September 25, 2023
The weather has not only caused flooding but has also taken a toll on the city’s electricity supply.
Areas affected include Philippi, Gugulethu, Eastridge, Steenberg, Wetton, Bellville, Plattekloof, Green Point, and Pinati Estate.
Eskom says load shedding has been suspended in the Eastern and Western Cape coastal areas, while the rest of the country is still subjected to stage 3 load shedding.
The power utility said that the widespread damage caused to electricity infrastructure caused by the flooding in the Western and Eastern Cape coastal areas is the reason for the suspension in load shedding, as it will allow the technical teams to restore supply to the areas safely.
Eskom said that permanent stage 3 load shedding will continue in all other areas across the country until further notice and it would communicate if any other significant changes occur.
The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued an Orange level 9 warning for the Overberg, Garden Route, and southern parts of the Cape Winelands Districts.