Speaking to OFM News, Andre van Rensburg - Communications Chairperson at Free State Agriculture - says farmlands in the area have this past week been engulfed by close to 109mm of rain.  He adds one of the farmers in the area reported 1 200 hectares  of corn was completely washed away by the rains. Van Rensburg says further reports estimate that 6000 ha of cornfields, planted during the summer planting season, have been washed away leaving the land drenched in water. Any more rain will threaten the viability of the land. He says farmlands remain too waterlogged for further planting or any cultivation to take place. Another farmer from Wesselsbron, Jakkels Le Roux, tells OFM News farmers are losing thousands of hectares a day because of the heavy rainfall. Le Roux adds that water tables are filled to the brim and that more water will drastically affect the already unusable land.

Third time was the charm for a horse that was stranded on an island in the Vaal River, just outside Barkley West in the Northern Cape for more than four days. Among those leading the rescue efforts was Ryno Griesel, who says that they were able to save the stranded horse after a 3-day tireless fight against the unrelenting dangers of the river. According to Griesel the river has already flowed at 1000m³/s with more floodgates being opened at Bloemhof, which would increase the flow to 1200m³/s. He says it would have been fatal for the horse, because the whole island would then be underwater.

AND

Continuous heavy rainfall keeps filling dams to their capacity. The Northern Cape Department of Agriculture warns community members living in downstream communities to take caution, as sluices at the Bloemhof Dam are set to be opened on Wednesday. According to recent updates from Rand Water, the Bloemhof Dam is at 108.8% capacity, with a flow of 1140m³/s - which will increase the flow of many receiving rivers.  Sol Plaatjie Local Municipality spokesperson, Sello Matsie, warns community members to be careful when in the vicinity of rivers and to avoid crossing any rivers that seem unsafe.

OFM News