Weather warnings remain on track for wind, snow, rain, storm surges and high

The Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC) this morning received feedback after the first of several cold fronts made landfall early on Sunday. Several fronts are expected to impact the weather in the Western Cape until next week Friday, 12 July 2024.

 “At this stage, ward 99 in Khayelitsha is our priority, as close to 1 000 structures were destroyed by strong winds on Thursday leaving close to 4 000 people without shelter for the current cold and wet conditions. Humanitarian aid including hot meals, blankets and other support is being offered,” said Anton Bredell, Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning said.

The South African Weather Services (SAWS) highlighted the additional fire danger for the Garden Route district which will be exacerbated by the strong winds in the coming days. According to SAWS several warnings for severe weather remains on track for the coming week:

• A Level 4 for heavy rain and potential flooding over the western parts of the Western Cape on Sunday.
• A Level 8 warning for high winds of between 80 and 90km/h affecting the City of Cape Town, Drakenstein, Stellenbosch and the western Overberg region.
• A level 4 warning for winds of between 50 and 70km/h for the Namakwa district as well as the central and eastern parts of the Western Cape.
• A Level 6 warning for waves along the coastline between Cape Columbine and Cape Agulhas from Sunday, spreading to Plettenberg Bay by the afternoon.
• A Level 6 warning for disruptive snowfall over the mountains of the Western Cape as well as southern high ground of the Namakwa District on Sunday and Monday.

Eskom reported line faults affecting Tulbagh, Rawsonville, the Hex River Valley as well as Belhar in the City of Cape Town. The faults have all be isolated and teams are working on restoring connectivity in all instances.

The Department of Water and Sanitation said dam levels have not yet seen significant inflows from the rains during the night, but this will change later today as runoff starts filling up our dams. Wemmershoek Dam, managed by the City of Cape Town, is currently at 77.8%, and controlled release of water into the Berg River will be managed carefully only once the dam levels approach 100%. It was mentioned at the meeting that many false social media posts were doing the rounds about the Wemmershoek Dam’s current level, causing anxiety amongst downstream residents. “Please refrain from spreading inaccurate information, as it might cause unnecessary panic, and it distracts disaster management services from attending to the critical risks at hand especially humanitarian and disaster aid,” Minister Bredell said.

The PDMC will continue to monitor the current weather situation as it develops, and daily operational meetings with all relevant stakeholders are scheduled for the coming week.