Thunderstorms swept across the drought-ravaged southern Cape on Wednesday, flooding towns, cutting power supplies and washing away roads.
In Suurbraak and Riversdale, people who had been cut off by swollen rivers were airlifted to safety.
Knysna and Robertson had the most rain ever measured in a single day in December since records began in the 1880s.
The unexpected downpours came as most of the southern Cape towns were in the grip of a summer drought and subjected to severe water restrictions.
Two adults and two children on a farm near Suurbraak were airlifted to safety by the Red Cross Skymed helicopter and in Riversdale a mother and child were rescued from a rooftop by the Nokia Surf Rescue helicopter.
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In Knysna, 189mm of rain fell between 8am and 2pm, turning streets into rivers and flooding shops, restaurants, municipal offices and homes. The average December rainfall for Knysna is 53mm. Yesterday's rain was more than double Knysna's highest rainfall ever recorded in 24 hours in December, which was 72mm in 1970. It is the highest 24-hour December rainfall since records began in 1880.
Megan Mason, of The Olive Tree restaurant, said the water was about one metre deep in her Main Street restaurant.
"Some of the orders had been cooked, so we served customers sitting on tables. Now all the plugs are under water, so everything's switched off and all the meat and supplies in the fridges and freezers are going to go off," Mason said.
In Robertson, 175mm of rain fell between 8am and 2pm. The average December rainfall for Robertson is 16mm and the highest ever recorded there in 24 hours in December is 45mm.
Mariana Oliver, of the Cape Town weather office, said yesterday's rain was the highest recorded for the town in 24 hours since records began in 1877.
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