Gauteng residents warned of more heavy rain this week

Following two days of heavy downpours, which caused flooding in Gauteng, the South African Weather Service warns that the chances of showers and thundershowers are expected to increase to 80% today.

Yesterday, forecaster Wayne Venter said rain was expected from late this afternoon going into the evening.

“There is also a possibility that it might last into Saturday morning. Similar wet conditions are expected on Saturday afternoon, mainly around the northern parts of the province, which include Pretoria,” Venter said.

He said similar conditions are also on the cards for North West, Free State, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

“There still remains a very high risk of heavy rain, which will result in flooding in more places during this period.”

According to the weather desk, there had been damage to property, including at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg where some flights were diverted or delayed.

Major roads were affected and cars were submerged or swept away on the R24, N3 and N12 highways.

“The first signal that indicated the alert for severe thunderstorms was justified was the development of a band of thunderstorms observed via satellite and radar imagery, moving into the area during the late afternoon from about 2pm on Wednesday. These severe thunderstorms produced heavy rain within a short space of time, which subsequently led to flash flooding.”

Consistent rainfall is only expected to kick in from December when the La Nina weather system is expected to finally come into its own.

Damaged roads, bridges and stormwater drains included the R55 in Kyalami, where a bridge collapsed, the Linksfield Road off-ramp and on-ramp to N3, the corner of Louis Botha and Houghton Drive near Sasol – where a wall collapsed as well as a storm-water drain in Siyabusa (Rabie Ridge), which flooded due to insufficient storm-water system capacity.

Meanwhile, the wall at Joburg Zoo collapsed next to Jan Smuts Avenue while area debris had to be removed on the M1 South Athol Oaklands, and Oxford.

Motorists were also advised to take precautions when driving during a thunderstorm and this included not driving into water covering the road as well as looking out for flooding at highway dips, bridges and low areas.

Motorists were further cautioned to leave their vehicle immediately if it stalled and rather seek higher ground; to be cautious, especially at night when visibility is impaired, and to not park their vehicle alongside streams, particularly during threatening conditions.

Finally, residents were urged to avoid already flooded areas and high-velocity flow areas, to never attempt to run across flooding water if the water is above the ankles, walk into or near high water and to keep children away from drainage ditches and open stormwater drains.

– Caxton News Service