‘Opening of sluice gates damaged our properties’ – Vaal residents furious they weren’t warned

The torrential rainfall which was experienced in various parts of the country over the last couple of days left a trail of destruction and many people destitute.

The rainfall was particularly heavy in the southern parts of Gauteng where several residents lost their personal belongings.

The heavy downpours also prompted the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to open 12 sluice gates at the Vaal Dam to prevent the dam wall collapsing.

ALSO READ: Torrential rains leave path of destruction through Eastern Cape

Affected residents who spoke to The Citizen said if they were informed timeously about the decision to open the sluice gates, they could have saved many of their personal belongings. They would also have been able to vacate their homes in time.

One of the residents, Jurie Botha, said they were not given any notice whatsoever.

“The situation is so bad … we lost everything, from our furniture and many other personal belongings.

“The volume of water that was in our house was so high and at some point it could reach our ceiling within the space of an hour,” he said.

He said they received no assistance from the government, police or the army.

“We have lost everything, all our personal belongings are broken and wet but I am thankful that me and my  family are all safe… that’s all that matters.

“It is really a sad moment for all of us and we just don’t know what to do.”

Another resident Arina van Niekerk was too distraught to recall the devastating of the last couple of days.

Speaking on her behalf, Van Niekerk’s niece Landie Fourie said she has been visiting them to take them fresh bedding and food.

“The situation here has been really bad and heartbreaking and no one from government had warned local residents about their plans and decision to open the sluice gates,” said Fourie.

Meanwhile, the DWS said it had to implement its flood preparedness plan (FPP) to ensure the safety of individuals and infrastructure, to minimise disruption of services, destruction of property and livelihoods due to flooding. It also needed to guarantee that dams are still full at the end of the flood season.

“Due to the continuing heavy rains in large parts of the country, many rivers are overflowing, and most dams are full and spilling. The same is occurring in the Vaal and Orange river system and the water level has risen rapidly and made it necessary to open sluice gates at the Vaal Dam.”

Days leading up to the weekend’s flooding, the South African Weather Service (SAWS) issued a level 5 alert about the strong likelihood of heavy rainfall which could lead to flooding, particularly in the southern parts of Gauteng.

ALSO READ: Weather warning: Another week of downpours hold severe risk to property, people

The recent heavy downpours have been as a result of the La Nina weather system which is associated with a lot of rain.

The SAWS have since last year been warning about wetter and cooler summer season and this has been the case for most of the current season.

Despite numerous attempts to get comment from the DWS, the department had not responded to queries sent by The Citizen at the time of publishing this article.

ALSO READ: Full river systems, heavy rain and La Niña hold potential for ‘disaster’