Supplied
Large parts of the Eastern Cape are awash with water after days of heavy rain brought on by a massive cold front which also packed freezing temperatures and snow.
The most significant falls were recorded at Kareedouw in the heart of the Langkloof, which is Nelson Mandela Bay’s main catchment area.
Local weather office spokesperson Garth Sampson reports that 49.6 mm of rain was measured at Kareedouw for the past 24 hours, up until 8 am.
Over the past three days, Kareedouw has now received 74 mm of rain with the prospect of more to come during the course of Friday.
Sampson says this runoff will flow directly into the Churchill Dam.
Joubertina, some 50 km West of Kareedouw, has received 39.4 mm of rain so far this week, while the Kouga Dam has measured 21.5 mm and Patensie 23.8 mm.
Nelson Mandela Bay has also received significant rain this week with a total of 74.2 mm measured at the airport up until 8 am.
Elsewhere, Plettenberg has enjoyed 68.6 mm the past three days and Port Alfred a very welcome 33.8 mm.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality is reporting that its main supply dams are now at an average combined capacity of 10.22%
The dam levels have increased by 0.24% since the 21st of July and are likely to increase further over the next few days as run-off continues into the main supply dams.
