Crisis averted at the Vaal Dam

The Department of Water and Sanitation has successfully reduced the Vaal Dam’s level from 109.3% to a more manageable 101.24%, averting a flood crisis that had threatened riverside communities and businesses in the region.

According to the latest measurements from The Reservoir, a Water Resource Information Centre for the Catchment Management Forums of the Upper Vaal Water Management Area, the dam now stands at 101.24% as of 24 November 2025.

The dam has an inflow of 329.8m³/s and an outflow of 549.0m³/s through three open sluice gates.

Its dramatic turnaround marks a stark contrast to the same period last year, when the dam stood at just 30.9%, according to the department.

Vaal Dam controlled release operation

Midvaal councillor Pieter Swart said during the past week, from 17 to 23 November, the department executed a controlled water release that saw the dam level drop.

“This was achieved by maintaining a sustained high discharge rate of 1,097.0m³/s through eight open sluices for most of the week,” said Swart.

He added that as inflows began to decline, authorities progressively reduced the number of open sluice gates.

The department closed four gates over the weekend, bringing the number down from eight on 22 November to four by 23 November.

On Monday, one additional gate was closed at 10am, leaving three gates currently operational.

The Vaal Barrage, which manages flow downstream, recorded a level of 7.1 metres with an outflow of 305.0m³/s and a water temperature of 19.8 degrees Celsius.

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Flood risk eliminated

Swart confirmed that the flood threat to residents living near the riverbank has been eliminated.

“There’s no flooding risk really anymore until they maybe decide to open more sluice gates again for some reason,” he told The Citizen.

“If we get a lot of rain, they might decide to do that. But with fewer sluice gates open, there shouldn’t be any risk of flooding downstream, which means that evacuation and emergency measures shouldn’t be relevant there.”

Last week, authorities warned residents and businesses to evacuate due to the risk of riverbank overflow as the dam reached high water levels from heavy seasonal rains.

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Management defended

Swart defended the department’s handling of the situation, noting the delicate balance between water security and flood management.

“The mandate of the Department of Water and Sanitation is to keep the dam as full as possible for as long as possible,” he explained.

“They have to wait until they get up-to-date data from the weather services to know when there’s more rain coming, and only then can they take into consideration whether they should open the sluice gates or not. So in my opinion, they have actually managed it very well this year.”

The councillor highlighted that the dam has been operating above 100% capacity for most of 2025, an unprecedented achievement in recent memory.

Downstream impacts

Swart attributed downstream damage primarily to development in vulnerable areas rather than poor dam management.

“Unfortunately, there will still be damage downstream, but that’s mainly because of structures and so on being built in floodplain areas. It’s not necessarily because of bad management in the dam,” he stated.

Responding to criticism from some residents who believed the gates should have been opened earlier to avoid possible flooding, Swart emphasised the legal and practical constraints.

“The fact is that the mandate states that they [the department] must keep it as full as possible for as long as possible. They can’t just maybe drop the percentage down to 80% and then if the rain doesn’t come, then the dam is not where it should be,” he said.

“So from a legal perspective, I think, and from a practical perspective, in my opinion, they actually did quite a good job this year.”

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