Waterlogged
2011-06-23
Sieb Sieberhagen
THE heavy weather in Drakenstein is set to continue until Sunday morning, after hitting the valley hard last Wednesday. In Jan van Riebeeck Drive in Groenheuwel, a taxi lost its footing, landing on its roof at the side of the road, when the driver swerved to avoid a car which had stopped at a robot. Two of the passengers were taken to hospital by ambulance. In Bain’s Kloof, three hikers from Durbanville who took off in sunny weather on Saturday to go camping in the mountain, were forced to spend Sunday night in a small tent braving the cold and wet weather, when their return route was blocked by the flooded Witte River. They were air-lifted out by a rescue helicopter on Monday morning, after anxious family members reported them missing on Sunday. Many roads were flooded during the heavy downpours last week, during which 77 mm of rain was measured in Paarl. The average rainfall for June (121 mm) may be surpassed by Sunday, as more than 60 mm of rain is expected over the next three days. The rain will be welcomed by farmers, as dam levels have been low following a relatively dry autumn. The water levels of the Wemmershoek and Berg River Dams have already risen to 65% and 74%, compared to last year’s levels at this time of respectively 63% and 100,3%.
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