Author: Marillia Veldkornet
29 June 2021 Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warning: Damaging Winds
Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warning: Damaging Winds – 29 June 2021
The Cape Town Weather Office has issued the following impact based warning:
Hazard: Damaging Winds
Alert level: 6
Affected municipalities: Beaufort-West, Bergriver, Bitou, Breede Valley, Cederberg, Drakenstein, George, Hantam, Hessequa, Kamiesberg, Kannaland, Karoo Hoogland, Knysna, Laingsburg, Langeberg, Matzikamma, Bergrivier, Cederberg, Kamiesberg, Matzikama, Nama Khoi, Mossel Bay, Richtersveld, Oudtshoorn, Prince Albert, Stellenbosch, Swellendam, Theewaterskloof and Witzenburg.
Valid from: 29/06/2021 at 16:00
Valid to: 30/06/2021 at 8:00
Report any weather related incidents to the Garden Route Disaster Management Centre at: 044-805 5071.
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28 June 2021 Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warning: Damaging Waves
Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warning: Damaging Waves – 28 June 2021
The Cape Town Weather Office has issued the following impact based warning:
Hazard: Damaging Waves
Alert level: 2
Affected municipalities: Bergrivier, Bitou, Cape Agulhas, Cederberg, City of Cape Town, George, Hessequa, Kammiesberg, Knysna, Matzikama, Mossel Bay, Nama Khoi, Overstrand, Richtersveld, Saldanha Bay, Swartland and Table Bay.
Valid from: 28/06/2021 at 1:00
Valid to: 29/06/2021 at 23:00
Report any weather related incidents to the Garden Route Disaster Management Centre at: 044 805 5071.
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24 June 2021 Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warnings: Damaging Winds & Damaging Waves
Weather Alert: Impact Based Weather Warnings: Damaging Winds & Damaging Waves
The Cape Town Weather Office has issued the following Impact Based Warnings for the Western Cape and Namaqua Region of Northern Cape:
Legal notice: “This warning from SA Weather Service must be communicated as received and may not be altered under any circumstance. It must be forwarded or communicated in its entirety and no portion hereof may be replicated or copied and distributed.”
HAZARD 1: Damaging Winds
Alert Level: Yellow (L2)
Affected Municipalities: Beaufort West, Breede Valley, Cape Agulhas, City of Cape Town, Drakenstein, Karoo Hoogland, Laingsburg, Langeberg, Bergrivier, Bitou, Cape Agulhas, Cape Agulhas, Cederberg, City of Cape town, George, Hessequa, Knysna, Mossel Bay, Overstrand, Saldanha Bay, Swartland, Table Bay, Overstrand, Prince Albert, Stellenbosch, Swellendam, Theewaterskloof and Witzenberg.
Valid From (SAST): 25/06/21 09h00
Valid To (SAST): 26/06/21 00h00
Discussion: Cold front is expected to make landfall over the Cape on Friday. Ahead of the cold front the winds are expected to be strong to near gale north westerly to westerly (50 to 60km/h gusting 70 to 80km/h) over the western Cape interior and southern parts of the Namakwa District on Friday afternoon moderating through the night. However along the west and south west coastal areas strong to gale force north-westerly wind (60-80km/h gusting 90km/h) is expected from late morning spreading along the south coast from the evening and moderating during Saturday.
Impact: Localised damage to settlements can be expected. Localised problems can be expected for high-sided vehicles on prone routes (N1, N7, R321, R43) due to cross winds on exposed high level roads or bridges. Some transport routes and travel services can be affected by the winds. Along the coast, localised disruption to ports and small harbours for short period of time can be expected. Difficulty in navigation with rough choppy seas is likely.
Instruction: Be aware of the following: sudden cross winds if traveling especially between buildings, fallen trees or power lines.
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Legal notice: “This warning from SA Weather Service must be communicated as received and may not be altered under any circumstance.
It must be forwarded or communicated in its entirety and no portion hereof may be replicated or copied and distributed.”
HAZARD 2: Damaging Waves
Alert Level: Yellow(L2)
Affected Municipalities: Bergrivier, Bitou, Cape Agulhas, Cape Agulhas, Cederberg, City of Cape town, George, Hessequa, Knysna, Mossel Bay, Overstrand, Saldanha Bay, Swartland and Table Bay.
Valid From (SAST): 25/06/21 12h00
Valid To (SAST): 26/06/21 00h00
Discussion: Cold front is expected to pass over the Cape on Friday. Significant wave heights of 4.5m to 6.5m (SW/W swell) can be expected between Lambert’s Bay and Stilbaai by Friday evening spreading to Plettenberg Bay on Saturday. Wave heights subside by Saturday evening.
Impact: Localised damage to coastal infrastructure as well as anglers and beach-goers on low-level rocks may be at risk of being swept off by large waves. Difficulty in navigation at sea for small vessels and personal watercraft (e.g. kayaks) can be expected. This may lead to vessels taking on water and capsizing in a locality. Localised disruption to small harbours for short periods is possible. Disruption to beachfront activities is likely.
Instruction: Be aware of large unpredictable waves along the coast. Small vessels are advised to seek shelter in harbours, bays or inlets. Be aware of strong rip currents especially during spring tides.
Report any weather related incidents to the Garden Route Disaster Management Centre at 044 805 5071.
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23 June 2021 Public Notice: GRDM 2021/2022 Top Layer Service Delivery Budget Implementation Plan (SDBIP) approved
Public Notice: GRDM 2021/2022 Top Layer Service Delivery Budget Implementation Plan (SDBIP) approved
Members of the public,
Please be informed that the Top Layer Service Delivery Budget Implementation Plan (SDBIP) for the 2021/2022 financial year was approved on 21 June 2021.
For more information, contact the Manager: Performance Management, Ms Ilse Saaiman, at:
Tel: 044-803 1300 / E-mail: pms@gardenroute.gov.za.
22 June 2021 Media Release: GRDM Roads employee receives 40-year long-service award
Media Release: GRDM Roads employee receives 40-year long-service award
For immediate release
22 June 2021
This morning at the Council Meeting of Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM), Nicolas Oosthuizen (better known as Nico) was awarded a long-service certificate for his work rendered to date, to the GRDM. Nico has been employed at the GRDM Roads Services Department for a forty (40) year period.
Oosthuizen joined the GRDM Roads team (Divisional Council at the time) in January 1981 and was initially appointed as General Worker. Today, Oosthuizen is a qualified Diesel Mechanic who specialises in earth moving and construction. He started his training at the Western Cape Provincial Government in 2000 and obtained his qualification as a Diesel Mechanic in May 2003.
During an interview with Oosthuizen, he recalls that when he was appointed at the municipality, he was “very young and inexperienced during that time”. However, soon plenty of responsibilities started to rest on his shoulders. Due to his passion for his job, he has been able to persevere and push through, overcoming every obstacle in his way to achieve success. He said: “This is not a ‘clean job’, however, the best feeling I get while working for GRDM is when I am able to repair a vehicle and see it driving on the road again”. He further said: “I am thankful to the Garden Route District Municipality for my years of tenure and that I can live my passion and contribute strongly to the services that the municipality renders to the Garden Route”.
Gerald Sinkfontein, Deputy Manager of Mechanical Services at GRDM, describes Oosthuizen as an exceptional individual and as a person with good interpersonal skills. His characteristics, respect and helpfulness towards others in the workplace, makes it a pleasure to work with him.
Dirk Krohn, Superintendent: Workshop for the George and Riversdale depots and supervisor of Oosthuizen, remembers that when he started at GRDM Roads in 1999, Nico was already employed at the municipality. “The two of us have good working relations. Reason being, he is a willing employee since he is optimistic about his work. For that, I’ve developed the greatest respect for him,” he said. Lastly, Krohn noted that it is an honour to have Oosthuizen as part of their team as he is one of the longest-serving employees at the Roads Department, “and this is the reason why his colleagues have the highest respect for him!”
Congratulations Nico Oosthuizen!
We thank you for your loyal services to the Roads Department of GRDM.
Feature Photo: GRDM Executive Mayor, Alderman Memory Booysen (right), hands over the 40-year long service certificate to Nico Oosthuizen (2nd, right), in the presence of the GRDM Executive Manager for Roads and Transport Planning, John Daniels (2nd, left) and Portfolio Chairperson for Roads and Transport Planning, Cllr Rowan Spies (left).
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18 June 2021 Media Release: Environmental Health Practitioners continue to sensitise Garden Routers of a rise in COVID-19 infections
Media Release: Environmental Health Practitioners continue to sensitise Garden Routers of a rise in COVID-19 infections
For immediate release
18 June 2021
With the sharp spike in Covid-19 positive cases over the past few weeks, Environmental Health Practitioners (EHP) of Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) play a pivotal role in ensuring that infection rates decrease. To address the issue, the various EHPs of GRDM implemented strict measures to ensure that the health of the residents in the area is protected.
According to recent reports received from the Executive Manager for Community Services at GRDM, Clive Africa, the district’s respective Municipal Health sections implemented various measures in their attempt to stabilise the Covid-19 cases. Among these measures are the continuous discussions with local municipalities and other stakeholders to intensify activities in the district. Key performance areas relevant to the pandemic were therefore the focal point. The focus now is primarily on house visits, contact tracing of newly reported cases, health and hygiene awareness interventions at identified premises, and health surveillance of premises and collaborative blitzes at spaza shops.
During the last few weeks, more awareness sessions were conducted in residential areas of the district in collaboration with health care workers and officials from the Provincial Hospitals. It was established that some of the churches were not Covid-19 compliant, more specifically in the Mossel Bay area – where no social distancing, no wearing of masks and too many people were allowed to attend services at the same time, were found. An investigation and awareness campaigns followed, after which the following were implemented.
- awareness sessions with all church denominations in the area;
- awareness sessions at restaurants to make use of outdoor tables as much as possible;
- media campaign (print and electronic), with the help from the local municipality; and
- compliance inspections with the support from the South African Police Service.
EHPs at GRDM furthermore continue to organise joint operations with the South African Police Service for their visits to spaza shops and taverns, as well as Tshisanyamas. These are conducted after-hours and are part of their ongoing interventions to curb the rise of infections in the district. Furthermore, continuous compliance visits to funeral parlours are also taking place.
More Covid-19 measures in place after the President’s announcement on 15 June 2021, include:
- Curfew from 22:00 to 4:00 – bars and restaurants need to close by 21:00;
- Alcohols sales from Monday to Thursday from 10:00 to 18:00;
- Funerals restricted to 50 persons per service with a maximum of 2 hours per funeral, with no after-funeral activities;
- All gatherings restricted to 50 persons (indoor) and 100 persons (outdoor); and
- The wearing of masks is mandatory – any person without a face cover in a public space will be committing an offence.
Report non-compliance by businesses or related incidents to the GRDM Disaster Management Centre 24/7 at telephone number 044-805 5071.
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