KNYSNA NEWS - The heavy rains over the past week were welcomed by residents of the Garden Route.
Knysna experienced torrential rains this past weekend, with some areas measuring more than 100mm of rain in only three days.
According to the South Africa Weather Service (Saws), while rain at this time of year is not abnormal, the intensity of what has fallen is indeed unusual.
This statement was corroborated by Robin Lee of the the climate section at the Saws station in Cape Town. Lee noted that the rainfall that Plettenberg Bay has experienced thus far, is the highest it has seen since 2015.
While that is based on Plett's total rainfall, Knysna on the other hand is breaking new ground with its daily average. According to Lee, the rain which was experienced over the past few days in Knysna constitutes the highest average per day over a five day period for the month of January in the past 20 years.
Knysna experienced some rather high temperatures last week with the mercury reaching the mid-30s on some days, but as many would know, this kind of weather can only hold so long before clouds converge and the heavens open up.
Temperatures began decreasing slightly in the middle of last week, with relief finally coming during the late hours of the evening of Thursday 16 January. While many welcomed the rain, few realised just how much rain would bucket down on Knysna in the few days to come.
The rains that hit Knysna left huge puddles covering half the road on Old Cape Road. Photo: Blake Linder
According to Saws forecaster Lebogang Makgati, rainfall is normal as Knysna forms part of an all-year rainfall region. However, she admitted that having this much rain fall in such a short period of time in January is in fact, not normal.
"There was already a system brewing along the southern coastline, which would have been the first rainfall that was experienced," Makgati said. "This intensified however because it was joined by another system, which led to extended periods of accumulated rainfall."
Makgati noted further that in the days or week to come, the Little Karoo can expect more of the rain, while the coast will experience a slightly weaker system with on and off rain.
Garden Route District Municipality disaster management manager Gerhard Otto noted however that the rainfall is similar to when the same systems developed in the past.
"The rain that we received over the last couple of days was as a result of a well-developed undercutting or cut-off low and the rainfall figures correlate to figures measured after similar occurrences in the past," Otto said.
Knysna-Plett Herald reached out to residents on Facebook to hear how much rain they measured in their meters between Thursday evening and Monday morning, and here's what they reported:
• Platboskop (Saws): 153mm
• Stormsrivier Witteklip (Saws): 142mm
• Kleingrysbos (Saws): 136mm
• Diepwalle (Saws): 129mm
• Lake Brenton: 112mm
• Elandskraal, Karatara: 112mm
• Hunters Home: 101mm
• Sanparks Harkerville Station: 92mm
• Rheenendal: 92mm
• Simola: 90mm
• Sanparks Offices, Thesen Island: 87mm
• Costa Sarda: 87mm
• Phantom Pass: 85mm
• Old Place: 84mm
• Sedgefield: 80mm
• Plettenberg Bay (Saws): 73mm
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