Cape Town - Not only has there been an unusual amount of cold fronts for this early in the year, but in many places around Cape Town, this March (usually one of the driest months of the year) was as wet as a normal June or July.
The South African Weather Service (Saws) said this well-above-normal rainfall for March brought relief from the dry conditions experienced from September last year.
Stefaan Conradie, a PhD student in climatology from the Climate Systems Analysis Group at UCT, said: “An initial look at preliminary March 2023 rainfall data for Table Mountain suggests it was the wettest March in the instrumental record of the ‘Mountain in the Sea’, going back as far as 1893.
“This appears to have been mostly the result of four cut-off low systems forming along the West Coast during the month with associated surface lows allowing for significant moisture convergence into the south-western Cape,” Conradie said.
Conradie said this was an extraordinary climatic event and opened up questions for further studies.
Saws senior forecaster Henning Grobler added: “March 2023 was not the wettest March ever, but it was well above the normal. The wettest March occurred in 2014 for Cape Town city with 125mm, only 1mm more than March 2023.
“The rainfall figures for Table Mountain house and Woodhead Dam totalled around 120mm, but the final figures are not available yet.”
Conradie said dam levels were probably about 10% higher than they would have been after a “normal” March. “Basically, we have had about an extra winter’s month worth of rain recently.
“We will need to continue to monitor rainfall and dam levels closely. With dam levels around 60% now, we’re certainly not out of the woods yet, but even with slightly below normal winter rains, the dams should come close to 100% this year. So we’re in a much better position than we were in November last year,” Conradie said.
At this stage, Grobler said the Saws seasonal outlook for winter indicated that the Western Cape would receive below-average rainfall from April to August 2023 and that the public were encouraged to continue their water-saving methods and efforts.
Water and sanitation Mayco member Zahid Badroodien said: “We note that March 2023 was very wet compared to previous rainfall records, resulting in a significant boost to the dam levels and leaving us in a better position.
“The Saws seasonal forecast indicated average rainfall at the start of winter, but below-average rainfall later this year. So, precautionary water use is still encouraged. The City urges the public to stay below the 850 million litres per day target to help keep our dams and reservoirs full for longer,” Badroodien said.
The Department of Water and Sanitation added that any increase in dam levels was a positive contribution to the available water within the province and reduced risks that relate to supply and demand.