Residents are urged to exercise caution as the City of Cape Town’s Disaster Risk Management Centre has been advised that Cape Town could now be affected by severe thunderstorms.
This follows the South African Weather Service (SAWS) updating its yellow level-4 warning for severe thunderstorms to now include the Cape Metropole.
Disaster Management Spokesperson Sonica Lategan said all relevant City departments have been advised to be on standby to deal with the impact brought on by the forecast.
Lategan further urged residents to exercise caution and report any emergencies to the City’s Public Emergency Communication Centre on 021 480 7700, from a cellphone, and 107, from a landline.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning said it had activated the district Disaster Management Centres and would be monitoring the weather patterns in close collaboration with the weather services.
The activation of the district disaster management centres comes after SA Weather issued a level-4 warning on Sunday that severe thunderstorms resulting in flooding and large amounts of small hail are expected over the Cape Winelands and Overberg districts.
“Provincial Departments of Health, Education and Infrastructure are on standby through the co-ordination of the provincial Disaster Management Centre in the event that services are disrupted,” said Anton Bredell, the MEC for Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning.
“According to the SAWS, we can expect rapid, heavy downpours ranging from 20-40mm, excessive lightning, strong downdraughts, as well as large amounts of small hail,” Bredell said.
Bredell said that although local authorities will be ready to deal with any eventuality, the public should be careful and take heed of warnings that are issued.
“It would be good to avoid unnecessary travel on Monday and take note of the risks associated with strong winds, heavy rain and hail,” Bredell said.