Flood woes tear at park’s best features

SINKHOLES, landslides, mudslides, fallen trees, debris and loose boulders on roads have been reported at the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) as a result of several days of adverse weather conditions that have affected much of the Western Cape, prompting a call for caution when traversing these areas.

SA National Parks (SANParks) confirmed that the recent heavy rainfall and resultant flooding did not spare the TMNP infrastructure and natural vegetation.

TMNP manager Megan Taplin said the estimated damage to the infrastructure was yet to be determined as there were new reports of infrastructure damage daily. At Newlands Forest, eroded trails and fallen trees/branches were reported.

The level 5 cycling trail in Upper Tokai has been closed due to landslides, boulders and debris in the road. The area is currently inaccessible for cyclists and vehicles.

Rhodes Memorial has been closed as the tar road had lifted, fallen trees were reported as well as huge amounts of debris in the road and eroded trails. Schusterskraal Boardwalk (Scarborough) has been closed as a result of erosion underneath the boardwalk.

There has been a landslide on the Tafelberg Jeep track, rock falling on the tar road, and a landslide along the Constantia Nek hiking trail leading up to the dam area. There is also a sinkhole and a fallen tree in Deer Park.

There were landslides along Camps Bay Pipe Track and Ouwa Pad in Silvermine is closed. There were landslides off the hiking trail to the Admiral’s Waterfall in Simon’s Town and road verge erosion discovered in Silvermine East management track.

Taplin said repair to the damage would be done once the weather conditions had improved and that park rangers and volunteers were already carrying out some work. Taplin said the floods affected tourism facilities.

Meanwhile, the Western Cape Bee Industry Association (WCBA) has raised concerns over the number of bee hives lost as a result of the rains.

One commercial beekeeper reportedly lost around 1 500 hives with concern that the number of total beehives lost could be in the thousands. The WCBA said beekeepers often place hives close to rivers where “bees are assured of forage and close to water”.

WCBA chairperson Chris Nicklin said: “A worrying factor is that many of these lost beehives were due to be moved into the fruit orchards in the Western Cape for pollination.

“This could result in a shortage of beehives for the critical task of pollination, particularly early in the spring season.”