Joburg emergency services on high alert ahead wet weekend

The South African Weather Service had issued a warning of severe thunderstorms in most parts of Johannesburg this weekend. 

It is only expected to clear on Sunday.

Spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi says from Friday they will be keeping a close watch as the rain is bound to cause some disruptions.

“From our side as the City of Johannesburg emergency services, we will remain on high alert monitoring the seven regions of the city.

“We’ve got our assist water rescue unit, which is a specialised water unit that responds to water-related emergencies on high alert.”

 READ: Large parts of SA set for cold and wet weekend

Mulaudzi has urged all resident to avoid low-lying bridges and for drivers to be careful on the roads.

“We therefore urge all our residents throughout all seven regions of the city to exercise caution, especially our motorists to extend a safe following distance and try to avoid crossing flooded roads and flooded bridges.

“And also our residents in our informal settlements we urge them to make sure they monitor the water levels in most of the river streams in the area since they are mostly staying in the flood line and also try and avoid crossing river streams to make sure that we avoid incidents where they might be trapped or get swept away by these severe thunderstorms.”

All 30 fire stations across the city are also on standby. 

“All our 30 fire stations throughout the city of Johannesburg are fully operational," says Mulaudzi.

“We also have our disaster management monitoring teams on high alert in all seven regions of the city so we should be able to respond to all emergencies that may occur throughout the weekend.”