Driest spell recalled as water runs low

AS KWAZULU-Natal clamps down on water use across the province, a Pietermaritzburg man has spoken of the province’s driest years since he started keeping records almost 41 years ago.

Chartered accountant Martin Hellberg told The Mercury he had begun keeping records in 1975. His records, captured on the eastern side of the city monthly (from July each year until June the following year) showed that although 1983 was the year of one of the province’s most serious droughts, when Pietermaritzburg residents were limited to 400 litres a household a day for several months, the 1982/3 season was not their driest.

“That belongs to 1991/2 when we had only 502mm over that 12-month period. I think the Midmar Dam wall had been raised in the intervening years which gave the locals greater capacity and so we did not have restrictions at that time.”

His records show that May and June this year had a paltry 7mm, and August received just 2mm. The wettest month this year, he said, had been January, with 95mm.

Hellberg said the wettest season over the past 41 years was 1987/8 when there was 1 318mm of rainfall.

“September 1987 shows the effect of the cyclone (Demoina) which hit us over the last weekend in that month, when we recorded 376mm, the wettest month in 41 years.”

The storm was responsible for record rainfall even in Swaziland. It killed 42 people and destroyed dams and crops.

The official rain statistics, he said, were likely to be higher, as his rain gauge overflowed during the cyclone.

Residents are not the only ones suffering as a result of water shortages.

Siphiwe Zulu, a sugar cane farmer in Glendale, about 20km inland of KwaDukuza, said his annual yield had dropped from 65 tons to 30 tons.

Earlier this week, Hazelmere Dam’s levels had dropped to 27.3% while the Umzinto Dam was at 18.2%.

Mayor Welcome Ndabe, of one of the hardest-hit areas, the iLembe District Municipality, said this week that the area had only enough water left for 120 days.