Western Cape residents will get a short reprieve from the rainy conditions until Tuesday before another two cold fronts are expected to hit the province this week, bringing further icy and wet conditions.

Last week, the South African Weather Service (SAWS) issued a Yellow Level 1 Warning for Disruptive Rainfall, which remained in place until Saturday night.

SAWS’ Cape Town forecaster Joew Malebane shared an update on Sunday, stating that the warning for disruptive rain is no longer active as it was for Friday and Saturday for the City of Cape Town municipality only. 

Malebane said partly cloudy conditions will set in from Sunday late until Tuesday.

The City of Cape Town’s Disaster Risk Management Centre (DRM) said they have been actively monitoring the current weather forecast for any potential impacts, and that there were no significant incidents reported to the Disaster Operations Centre.

DRM spokesperson Charlotte Powell said: “The South African Weather Service has indicated that light rain will persist until this evening. The Disaster Risk Management Centre will share a comprehensive assessment of the weather event’s impact as soon as all relevant information is available.”

Malebane added that there will be a cold front bringing isolated to scattered showers over the Western Cape, and rain from Wednesday to Thursday, with cold to very cold conditions.

“This cold front will progress eastwards thereafter, affecting the central parts of the country by Thursday. 

“Another cold front will approach the country on Friday evening, hence bringing moderate showers for most parts of the Western Cape and the Namakwa district (Northern Cape) from early Saturday until into Sunday,” Malebane said. 

Earlier this year, the SAWS cautioned that the Western Cape would be facing a high likelihood of below-normal rainfall for its winter season, but Malebane provided further insight on whether this remained the case.

“The seasonal outlook has been indicating a drier winter for this year for South Africa, however, with the contribution of weak cold fronts passing over the Western Cape, there are indications that we may get above-normal precipitation for the period of July and August.”

Prior to the cold rain, the City said it recognises that there is an ever-increasing need for assistance, and has reminded the public that seven City fire stations have been designated as donation drop-off points: Constantia, Goodwood, Hout Bay, Lakeside, Roeland Street, Strand and Wynberg.

The fire stations are open 24/7 and are always manned by someone in the watch room. Donors can also email Disaster.Donations@capetown.gov.za for collection.

Anyone wishing to assist can donate non-perishable food items like rice, maize meal, tinned fish, tinned beans and baby formula, as well as personal hygiene items.

The City also thanked its NGO partners who are supporting humanitarian relief efforts necessitated by the recent inclement weather.

On Saturday, Gift of the Givers (GOTG) said that they had teams on standby for the subsequent flooding being experienced in the province currently. 

“We have also noticed an increase in informal settlement fires as communities try to keep warm against the harsh cold weather. Several structures were burnt down in the Silverton Informal Settlement in Khayelitsha. 

“In response to this, we distributed hot meals, 5-litre bottles of water, blankets and sleeping mats to the affected community,” they said.

If residents want to contribute towards GOTG’s interventions, they can visit http://www.giftofthegivers.org/make-a-difference.

The City also encouraged residents to use the online platforms or contact the Customer Call Centre at 0860 103 089 for any City service requests. For emergency incidents, please reach out to the Public Emergency Communication Centre at 021 480 7700.

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