Last week the flooding that occurred due to the heavy rainfall in the Western Cape left many residents either knee-deep in water, without electricity or being stuck in traffic for hours due to road closures.
The rain, combined with the releasing of water from both the Wemmershoek and Berg River dams, caused the Berg River to overflow its banks to such an extent that two bridges in Paarl had to be closed for traffic. Both the Lang Street Bridge and the bridge in Distillery Street over the Palmiet River was closed for traffic because of the dangerously high water levels.
According to Louis Pienaar, Acting Executive Director: Engineering Services at Drakenstein Municipality, after inspection it was found the bridge in Distillery Street was damaged and was being closely monitored with only one lane open for traffic in Distillery Street.
“Several roads sustained damage; however, most of the damage was not very serious and already being repaired. Most of the damage is surface deformation, subsidence and potholes that have formed due to water infiltration.”
A resident of Riverside in Paarl East was one of many residents in Drakenstein who had to evacuate her home. The house is situated next to the Palmiet River, which burst its banks and rapidly carved the ground away from underneath her home to such an extent the back part of the house gave way and fell into the river. Informal settlements in different parts of Drakenstein were also flooded as well as houses in De Hollandsche Moolen.
According to Pienaar, the flooding and strong winds adversely affected some substations and the power supply to certain areas, due either to water damage to high- and low-voltage networks or substations that were underwater and had to be drained before repairs could take place.
He said the Dalwes 11 kV Switch Room was also damaged by the water and had to undergo a series of tests before it could be put back into operation.
“The power supply to most areas has already been restored. The Municipality is doing everything in its power to restore the power supply and at the same time ensure the safety of municipal officers as well as residents.”
On Wednesday morning, Pienaar said, there were still power outages in parts of wards 1 and 28, Fraaigelegen and Watergat roads, and part of ward 17, Jupiter and Voorschoten Streets.
Many residents were, however, of the opinion that the stormwater system of the municipality could not handle the volume of water.
“The municipality can assure the public that our storm water system is correctly designed, regularly cleaned and well maintained,” said Pienaar. “However, the public’s constant pollution of (and dumping in) stormwater drains sometimes contributes to the storm water system not always being able to carry away all the water.
“The municipality is of the opinion that large parts of the flooding were primarily caused by dam locks that were opened at Level 4, instead of water being released from the dams earlier and at lower levels (1 or 2), and not caused by a stormwater system problem. Our senior management is in the process of taking up the matter with the management of the Department of Water and Sanitation.”
He said by Wednesday morning around 772 residences, both formal and informal, reported flood damage, with reports still streaming in.
“Our fire, law enforcement, traffic, stormwater and roads departments, civil and electrical departments have been inundated with calls and requests for help. Various sections of the municipality were and are still busy with cleaning actions on roads and other areas.”. On Tuesday, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde and MEC Anton Bredell reported on the province’s coordinated disaster-management response to the heavy rains and flooding. Winde applauded the commitment and response of its disaster-management partners to ensure as many people as possible were kept out of harm’s way. “Tragically, two people died and my heart goes out to their families and loved ones,” he said.
