Limpopo Floods dams

Photo: Nomalungelo King / Twitter

Watch: Bridges washed away as ‘biblical’ flooding hits Limpopo, Mpumalanga

The true destructive power of nature is flexing its muscles in Limpopo and Mpumalanga on Tuesday – and Gauteng is also on high alert for floods.

Limpopo Floods dams

Photo: Nomalungelo King / Twitter

A raft of incessant rain has brought flood chaos to a number of South African provinces, with Limpopo and Mpumalanga bearing the brunt of the extreme weather. Meanwhile, Gauteng and North West are also bracing for further impact on Tuesday.

Latest weather warnings for South Africa, Tuesday 2 February

The South African Weather Services (SAWS) has issued a Yellow Level 4 warning for disruptive rain expected to affect four provinces on Tuesday. In a statement, SAWS said inclement weather would be experienced over Gauteng, the western bushveld of Limpopo, western Mpumalanga, central and eastern parts of North West and north-eastern Free State.

Over the past week, large parts of the country have been battered by heavy rains that originated from Tropical Storm Eloise a week ago that destroyed infrastructure in various regions. The SAWS on Tuesday warned the public to avoid low-lying bridges, roads covered with water and keep a safe following distance on the roads.

Watch: Flood waters cause chaos in Mpumalanga, Limpopo

Limpopo on higher alert level

On Tuesday morning, eastern regions of Limpopo were cranked up to Level 5 warnings. Bushbuckridge, Phalaborwa, Bushbuckridge, Makhado, and Giyani have now gone up a notch, according to the latest data provided by SAWS. The increase in threat means that disruptive events are more likely to happen in these regions, including:

  • Floods on roads and in settlements (formal and informal)
  • Damage to property, infrastructure, loss of livelihood and livestock
  • Major disruption of traffic flow due to major roads being flooded or closed
  • Damage to mud-based/make-shift houses/structures
  • Danger to life (fast flowing streams / deep water)
  • Isolated cases of breakages of informal/farm dam walls