The Western Cape has been hit by gale-force winds and heavy rains since the weekend. A number of areas were also affected by fires, made worse by the high winds.
The South African Weather Service had issued a level nine warning for an intense cut-off low-pressure system.
As a precaution, the provincial government closed schools on Monday in the Cape Winelands, Overberg, Helderberg and Macassar, Somerset West, Strand, Gordons Bay, Lwandle and Sir Lowry’s area.
The storm reportedly damaged twenty-six schools.
Several roads were closed over the weekend and Chapman’s Peak Drive and Clarence Drive were still closed on Monday afternoon.
The City of Cape Town said by early afternoon on Monday power supply had been restored in many of the roughly 30 areas affected by the storm.
The City’s Recreation and Parks Department’s after-hours tree emergency teams fielded at least 108 calls, exceeding the total number of incidents attended to during a three-month period in winter 2023, which was 76.
The stormy weather came on top of a devastating fire in Kayamandi. At least 1,500 people were displaced after a fire fuelled by gale-force winds swept through the informal settlement on Saturday morning.
Upon GroundUp’s arrival in Kayamandi on Monday afternoon, residents were seen cleaning up their plots and salvaging what they could from the aftermath of the fire.
Ward Councillor Ayanda Tomose (ANC) stated that the fire began around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.
In response, they opened a church and a hall to provide shelter and storage space for affected individuals.
Tomose mentioned receiving assistance from Gift of the Givers and ongoing support from the provincial and national Department of Human Settlements.
He assured that materials from the municipality would be delivered starting the following day.
Tomose expressed determination to support the affected residents in recovering from the fire’s devastation.
Reflecting on the unexpectedness of the fire, he noted that the timing during the beginning of winter caught them off guard, particularly following a severe storm experienced during the previous winter.
In Lwandle, both formal and informal dwellings bore the brunt of the damage.
Busiswa Moreneng Gili recounted, “We didn’t sleep at all.”
In the morning yesterday, the roof just blew off. Everything is damaged.” She added, “I was supposed to go to work today, I can’t because of this.”
Gift of the Givers arrived at the community hall in Lwandle around 11 a.m. on Monday. Project manager Ali Sablay affirmed, “The operations will continue throughout the day. Our teams are on standby to assist as far as Beaufort West and the Garden Route.”
He outlined the organisation’s support efforts, stating, “We are providing blankets, warm clothing, hot meals, and toiletries.”
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