Officials continue to stress the importance of water conservation measures and community vigilance.
Knysna received much-needed rainfall on Thursday morning, offering temporary respite to a municipality facing an acute water crisis with approximately a week of water supply remaining in the Akkerkloof Dam.
However, officials warn that the town remains at risk.
The municipality’s Ward 9 councillor, Sharon Sabbagh, confirmed that substantial rainfall began around 5am on Thursday, with varying amounts recorded in different areas.
Water supply system and current challenges
Sabbagh said that the Akkerkloof Dam, which had dropped to 15% capacity by Wednesday, is an off-river storage dam that does not receive water directly from a river.
Instead, it receives water pumped from the Charlesford pump station through the Eastford pump station via a balancing dam. The dam stores excess water capacity beyond daily production needs.
“We have been drawing water from the Akkerkloof dam, which is an off-river storage dam,” Sabbagh explained, noting that declining water levels had brought the municipality to its current predicament.
The municipality faces significant operational constraints at the Charlesford pump station, which extracts water from the Knysna River.
Under the water licence, pumping may occur only when the river flow exceeds 100 litres per second to protect the estuary. “If it falls below that, it impacts the estuary if we were to continue pumping,” Sabbagh said.
The municipality’s vulnerability stems partly from inadequate storage capacity development over time.
Sabbagh noted that the Akkerkloof Dam has not been built up to capacity for storage purposes, creating a crisis when the Charlesford pump station failed and river flow declined.
“This crisis is now due to management failures, not so much the drought,” she said.
Sabbagh acknowledged that while the rain provides some breathing room, the fundamental crisis persists and requires careful management of water resources.
ALSO READ: No water cut-offs in Knysna yet as crisis unfolds
Day zero timeline remains uncertain
While optimistic about the rainfall’s impact, Sabbagh cautioned that insufficient data exists to definitively change the day zero timeline.
The critical factors determining any extension include whether the Charlesford pump station is operating optimally with both pumps functioning and whether the river flow has increased sufficiently.
“It’s still raining now, but a lot lighter than it was earlier. I think that this will create some relief and maybe extend the days that we have left,” Sabbagh said.
However, she emphasised that the crisis continues and requires ongoing vigilance from residents.
Sabbagh estimated that day zero could shift from 10 to 15 or 16 days, depending on rainfall and pumping capacity at the Charlesford station.
“We obviously need another day of rainfall to improve the situation,” she added.
Community response and conservation efforts
Officials continue to stress the importance of water conservation measures and community vigilance.
Sabbagh emphasised that reporting water leaks and abuse remains critical and residents must continue using water sparingly. “We need to keep that in the forefront of everybody’s mind,” she said.
The Gift of the Givers organisation has responded to the crisis following requests from the Garden Route municipality district.
Imtiaz Sooliman from the organisation confirmed that two water tankers will be operational in the area, with 45 water tanks arriving for strategic placement throughout the city.
These include 23 tanks sponsored by Jojo Tanks and 12 by Africa Tanks. Bottled water will be distributed to hospitals, clinics, and homes for the elderly in partnership with the department of health.
ALSO READ: Gift of the Givers have hands full with relief requests in flood-ravaged Limpopo
Fire and rain damage affects infrastructure
The water crisis coincides with ongoing fire emergencies in the Overstrand area, which have created additional infrastructure challenges.
Firefighters and fire management units have been battling fires at Stanford and Pearly Beach, now on days 9 and day 12 respectively.
The fires broke containment on Wednesday afternoon in strong westerly winds, requiring deployment of two Huey helicopters and an Oryx to support ground crews.
According to Overstrand municipal manager Dean O’Neill, electricity supply to Pearly Beach and surrounding farms was interrupted on Thursday, 15 January 2026, from 11am due to emergency line repairs necessitated by fire damage and subsequent rain.
“Welcome rain started about 8.30pm and continued through the night, while cooler conditions slowed things down and prevented the fire from spreading,” said O’Neill.
However, the rain also affected the electricity supply in the area.
“Fuses and insulators need to be replaced as they were cracked during the fire and the rain last night caused further damage.”
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