The rain has left flooded roads, fallen trees, power outages, and damaged infrastructure
Authorities have been inundated with reports of flooded roads, fallen trees, power outages, and damaged infrastructure across Gauteng on Sunday after devastating rain pelted the province.
In an update just after 10am, the Gauteng Provincial The Joint Operations Committee (JOC) said it had recieved reports from several areas hit hard by the bad weather, among the reports were:
- Boksburg: Flooded roads
- Highlands North/Oaklands: Fallen trees
- Lenasia: Flooded roads
- Kempton Park: Flooded roads and fallen trees
- Roodeport: Flooded roads, damaged power cables
- Sandton: Flooded roads, damaged power cables
“Conditions remain dangerous, with water accumulation and debris posing serious risks on many roads.
“Residents are strongly urged to avoid travelling unless absolutely necessary and to remain indoors where possible.”
Accidents have also been reported across the province, with one closing the Wonderboom Junction Bridge between Paul Kruger Street and Lavenda Road in Tshwane.
Here are some pictures and videos of the damage across the province, shared on social media.
More bad weather to come
The SA Weather Service confirmed on Sunday afternoon that “more rain is expected to spread into the northern parts of Gauteng from this afternoon into the evening”.
Power outages
Johannesburg electricity utility City Power had earlier warned that the rain may cause outages in some areas. “Severe weather conditions, such as heavy rain and thunderstorms, may strain our electricity network, resulting in unplanned power outages.”
It was later confirmed that there were outages due to the storm.
“City Power has implemented contingency measures across all our Service Delivery Centres (SDCs) to reduce the impact of the forecasted adverse weather on our infrastructure.
“We continue to rely on responsible electricity use from customers to help unburden the network and keep the lights on.
“Our teams will continue to attend to outstanding outages in different parts of the City, but customers should note that inclement weather conditions may affect our response time to outages, and as a result, repairs and restorations may be delayed.”
ALSO READ: Rain pelts Joburg: You may be hit with a power outage
Emergency services on high alert
City of Johannesburg Emergency Services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said Disaster Management Monitoring teams had been activated in all 7 regions of the City of Johannesburg, and all fire stations are fully operational, together with the Aquatic Rescue Unit, ready to respond to all water-related emergencies.”
He urged residents to report any emergencies.
“Our residents are encouraged to call our Emergency Services Command and Control Centre on 011 375 5911 for any life-threatening emergencies.”
This is a developing story
Additional reporting by Faizel Patel
NOW READ: WEATHER ALERT: KZN gears up for potentially devastating thunderstorms and floods
