Many parts of South Africa have been in the grip of the worst drought in 32 years since late last year. According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), this is due to a combination of a strong El Niño and global warming, which is human-induced.
The WMO said the 2011-2015 period has been the warmest five-year period on record, and the global average surface temperatures in 2015 have been the hottest ever recorded at a significant milestone of 1° Celsius above the pre-industrial era. Unfortunately, it also predicted that 2016 is going to be even hotter.
South Africa has been feeling that change, as even though 2015 was extremely hot, the first few weeks of 2016 have seen several highest maximum temperature records broken as South Africa experienced an extended heatwave. According to the SA weather service, on Thursday afternoon 7 January 2016, which was the peak of the heatwave, 36 highest maximum temperature records were reached.
A massive 21 areas recorded the highest temperatures ever, and those records were again broken within a number of days:
- Marico recorded a high of 43°C on the 6th January, breaking a record of 43 years, and the new record was broken again the very next day, when the temperature hit 45°C.
- Lephalale recorded highs of 43°C – previous highest was 42°C on 14 January 2003, and this record was again broken a day later at 44.5°C
- Pilanesburg saw its 14 year record high of 39.6°C broken when it recorded 40°C on 6th January and 42.9°C on the 7th of January.
While the heatwave was oppressing and difficult to handle, more difficult was the fact that the main rivers on which the local and some other communities depend on for water completely dried up. Farmers were despairing – one even committed suicide because he could not face seeing his farm on and for which he had worked for so many years, go to rack and ruin for lack of water. The locals tell of queuing from as early as 3am for water in the hope that the water trucks would come, and if they were lucky they would return home with some water – many did not get even a single drop and had to return again the next day.
People, we need to wake up! Water is a vital and precious resource and one which we cannot do without, so it is up to every one of us to become responsible water users and reuse, recycle and save water whenever, wherever and however we can.
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