7 April 2025
As rainfall continues to fall across the country, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has now opened a fifth sluice gate at the Vaal Dam, urging residents to evacuate low-lying areas and stay out of danger.
The water level of the Vaal Dam has increased over the last few days, according to officials monitoring the water resource that supplies Gauteng.
Vaal capacity
Heavy rains over the last few days have filled the Vaal Dam beyond its 100% capacity.
DWS spokesperson Wisane Mavasa said the sluice gate was opened on Sunday morning.
Mavasa said the current water storage levels at the dam are at about 109% full.
“We have had to open the fifth sluice gate after we had opened the fourth one yesterday just about 24 hours ago. This is due to the rapid rise of inflows coming through from the upstream into the Vaal dam, resulting in the dam, you know, picking up from 107.8% to the 109% that is sitting at right now.
“This water, as it’s flowing, will be reaching the Barrage [dam] at around six hours, meaning that the communities that are in the low-lying areas around the Barrage need to evacuate because they may be situated in flood lines or in about 100 meters from the river, they will end up being flooded if they are not evacuating within the timelines that we are providing,” Mavasa said.
Source:Citizen
