This week the Cape lived up to its reputation as “The Cape of Storms”, a black south-easter blowing up to 65 km/h causing havoc with and damage to land and sea traffic, trees, roofs and walls, and resulting in wide-spread flooding throughout the Western Cape province.  

The large-scale damage caused by the four-day storm has been attributed to climate change by Lynne Brown, the Premier of the Western Cape province.   A climatologist at the University of Cape Town said that the storm was “the strongest cut-off low pressure system to have hit the Western Cape in spring since 1979.   This confirmed a trend in the southern hemisphere over the past 30 years of cut-off lows increasing in intensity which may be a result of global warming.” the Cape Times reported. 

Starting on Tuesday, the southeaster was so strong that it blew over trucks in the city centre and in Camps Bay.   Accompanied by untypical heavy downpours, the driving rain caused severe flooding in Hermanus, causing the road between the town and Stanford to be closed from Tuesday onwards.   Robertson, Greyton, Caledon, Ceres, Swellendam and Touws River too were severely impacted by the storms when rivers in their towns overflowed.   The N1 and N2 highways were closed at times due to the floodwaters.   Heavy rains were also experienced on the Garden Route, but did not cause such severe damage as experienced a year ago.

Ships in Table Bay harbour had to be anchored to protect them against the galeforce winds.   Four cars were damaged at the Mount Nelson Hotel due to a fig tree being uprooted.    Guests staying at the Aquilla Game Reserve and the Montagu Spa had to be evacuated due to flooding.    

The heavy storms co-incided with an influx of tourists, who were severly disappointed by the weather hampering their sightseeing.