Moon proximity triggers big swells
THE MOON usually comes as close as 366 000km to Earth, but yesterday morning’s “supermoon” came a startling 5 600km closer. The proximity had a chaotic effect on the sea’s tides.
At least two popular restaurants overlooking the sea were lashed by huge waves, with the force of the water crashing through windows, causing extensive damage and flooding.
The supermoon coincided with a full lunar eclipse and the moon was seen big and red yesterday at about 3am.
About an hour later, the alarm at the Harbour House restaurant in Kalk Bay was set off. When the restaurant’s management arrived, they found water had swept through the restaurant. The seawater also flooded Lucky Fish, the fast food restaurant at the entrance to Harbour House.
Spokeswoman for the Harbour House Group, Bianca du Plessis said: “The waves crashed through one window of Harbour House, one window of Live Bait (formerly known as the Polana) and smashed out all of the windows of the original Live Bait, on the lower level.”
Du Plessis said that ironically the original premises of Live Bait was being waterproofed and refurbished.
He said Lucky Fish closed shop yesterday with water being cleared out, but it was “business as usual” at Harbour House
and Live Bait.
She said renovations would resume urgently. Du Plessis said estimated damages were between R350 000 and R400 000.
“The teams are amazingly resilient and resourceful – unstoppable, really.”
The Brass Bell Restaurant and Bar was also affected by the tide.
When the Cape Argus visited the restaurant in Kalk Bay, the bottom floor was flooded, but the top floor was open for business.
Chairman and viewing officer of the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, Jerome Jooste, said strong winds would also have augmented the high tides. “Yesterday the moon was at perigee. “It means that the moon came closer to the earth’s orbit, and had a greater effect on tide.
“This effect was much greater than a full moon.
“Maybe strong winds could have also have increased the tides.”
Henning Grobler from SA Weather Services said the swell – measuring between 3.5 and 4 metres – had subsided by yesterday afternoon.
“Its not unusual, it’s normal,” he told the Cape Argus.
Yesterday’s partly cloudy weather is making way for rain clouds in Cape Town with an 80 percent and 30 percent chance of rainfall over the next two days, respectively.
Sunny weather will return on Thursday and Friday, Grobler said.