Cape Town — Cape Town’s Disaster Risk Management Centre is working hard to deal with the aftermath of Wednesday night’s storm that damaged houses and property throughout the city.
According to Cape Disaster Risk Management Centre spokesperson, Sonica Lategan, the team was busy throughout the night attending to various weather-related incidents, she said on the City of Cape Town’s X page.
“Apart from flooded and obstructed roadways, there have also been reports of flooding in a number of residential areas, and electricity outages,” she said.
“The Disaster Coordinating Team will continue to oversee the City’s response to the inclement weather. The public is urged to please report service requests via the City’s voice, text and online channels so that these can be queued for action by the relevant departments,” she added.
Flooding this morning in the suburb of Blackheath, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa 🇿🇦
▪︎ 11 July 2024 ▪︎#CapeStorm #floods #Flooding pic.twitter.com/NurQf9cuIj
— DISASTER TRACKER (@DisasterTrackHQ) July 11, 2024
Lategan said the Disaster Risk Management Centre is aware of wind-related damage to several houses in the Wynberg area. More information will be made available once assessments have been concluded.
“The Disaster Management Centre can confirm that the City’s Fire & Rescue Service received an emergency call at approximately 11.20 pm last night, of roofs blown off in Wynberg, and damage to overhead electrical wires,” IOL reported Lategan saying.
She said crews responded to the incident and found four houses affected, with the occupants relocated to alternate accommodation. Fore staff also remained on site until 4:30 in the morning to ensure no further damages.
Cape Town – #CapeStorm Residents of Wynberg report a Tornado type event that occurred last night pic.twitter.com/GplI2mJu0e
— TrafficSA (@TrafficSA) July 11, 2024
The city’s public emergency communication centre (PECC) logged 339 incidents between 6 pm on Wednesday and 6 am on Thursday. More than 40% of the calls were weather-related, TimesLIVE reported.
The heavy rain through the night caused flooding across multiple roads, including the N1, the M5 southbound off-ramp onto Ottery Road, and AZ Berman Drive between Wespoort and Imperial. Rockley and Lester Road in Wynberg was also affected due to flooding under the railway bridge.
The City confirmed that various clinics and driver’s license testing centres will also remain closed due to the weather, with patients needing urgent healthcare urged to seek the nearest alternate venue.
Cape Town – #CapeStorm High Winds and rain across the greater Cape Town and inland areas – property damage and multiple fallen trees #Level8WeatherWarning pic.twitter.com/GTTqaHjKm5
— TrafficSA (@TrafficSA) July 11, 2024
According to News24, residents described the feeling when their houses were damaged by the storm. Wynberg resident Khemal Harris heard an eerie silence followed by a loud bang. When he processed the noise, he looked up and realised his roof was missing.
“There was a moment where it just went quiet, and then all of a sudden, there was this loud thud. When I came out into the passageway, I basically looked straight up into the sky. I went outside, and the different roofs were everywhere,” Harris said.
Meanwhile, Western Cape MEC for Safety and Security, JP Smith, said residents should be prepared for a new wave of extensive downpours on Thursday, going into the evening. He said response teams were ready after dealing with a difficult Thursday morning.
Cape Town – #CapeStorm #Flooding multiple routes affected in the Mitchells Plain area pic.twitter.com/A2TLPlELh0
— TrafficSA (@TrafficSA) July 11, 2024
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
