[imagesource: Twitter / EWN]

The Vaal Dam has been filling up steadily over the past few weeks as torrential rains have thrashed the area.

The Kruger National Park was greatly affected by flooding after the heavy downpours, while Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga have been battered by the storms, too.

Since the rain hasn’t eased much, communities living close to the Vaal Dam and river bank are highly concerned that the dam will burst its banks and cause even more severe destruction.

It is understood that the dam can typically contain an overflow of up to 115%, and as it stands, the dam is 120% full.

The Department of Water and Sanitation announced that 12 floodgates have already been opened to relieve the overfull dam, but some Vaal community leaders reckon this is a little too late, reported IOL:

Cindy Niblett, a community leader and member of the Vereeniging Business Corporation, said some of the floodgates had not been opened because they had not been maintained and were broken. Niblett, whose house is also along the river bank, said she had not seen such a large amount of flooding in the Vaal since 1975.

“There are about 60 floodgates, and they only opened 12; that dam cannot contain the amount of water that is there. We cannot control the rain, but they should have acted earlier because if that wall cracks and breaks, Gauteng will have a water problem, and it will be a disaster for people in the Vaal Triangle,” she said.

Residents living along the Vaal banks were evacuated on Sunday as the water was pouring into their homes:

#Vaal Flooding pic.twitter.com/p5x9RFhG3Q

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) February 19, 2023

#Vaal river in Parys right now. Surrounding residents have been evacuated. 🎥: @TheLegendaryJac pic.twitter.com/M7OSNEdidA

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) February 19, 2023

#Vaal Houses and a bridge heavily flooded in Parys. 🎥: @TheLegendaryJac pic.twitter.com/ZTDi1IpuIb

— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) February 19, 2023

Niblett notes that “the situation is bad”, adding that those who have money and insurance should be able to bounce back, “but for those who have nothing and are trying to survive, it’s tough”.

She thinks that the entire disaster could have been avoided if the floodgates at the barrage were properly controlled:

“Had we not stepped in as community leaders to ensure that people are safe, we could have lost a lot of lives? This area needs to be declared a disaster area,” she said.

The department confirmed that people residing on the banks were still being asked to evacuate while the gates would continue to remain open.

Hopefully, the water eases out enough to provide some relief to the affected residents.

[source:iol]