SANParks.org Forums

Carol, if you look at This pic taken last year during the floods you can see it looks very similar and it survived then with barely any damage so lets hope it does the same this time round.

Although I do agree, and support science Ifubesi, I have a bit of a giggle at the scientists. I can remember when they talked of "El Nino" and when that did not happen they called it "El Nina". In the old days, they called it "El Droogte" and "El Moerse reen"

Thanks again to Jaco V for these pics just in of Letaba, the high water bridge and the river:

According to Jaco, the river has subsided, the bridge has been cleared and is open again, and there is even choc milkshake available


LetabaD by dinkybird, on Flickr


LetabaC by dinkybird, on Flickr


LetabaB by dinkybird, on Flickr


letabaA by dinkybird, on Flickr

A post Joep made on his own page. He does not mention who made the photos, so I can't give due.

Shingwedzi huts in bygone times:


And now this, but first his text:

And they will need restoring:



When I asked him if the flooding is worse than last year he replied this:

The power in the rivers has to be seen to be believed! We have abandoned the rest of our trip and returned to Malelane area. Seems we missed the worst of everything......slipped through the main road Punda to Shingwedzi on the day it was open again, and got ahead of the closures etc further south too. The Letaba bridge looked close to overflowing when we crossed it......and it did next day. Will try to post some photos when connection and time allow.

I still vividly remember last year at Lower Sabie......

I believe a lot of the gossip and drama discussion of camp destruction etc is over-rated. Most of the water is flowing down existing natural water courses and just a natural phenomenon which has happened frequently over the last 100 years of the park's existence.

Some of the pictures look really dramatic because we are not used to these sights. The turbulence and debris washing downstream is certainly spectacular, but completely natural. Even those animals that are foolish enough not to seek higher ground die a natural death: this is part of nature's evolutionary process of survival and selection of the fittest, strongest, and most adaptable genes.

Most of the water washing into the camps is slow flowing, or just seeping, and this might damage timber floors doors or walls, but most structures are constructed solidly and high enough to withstand bad weather. (Letaba suffered extensive flooding last year up to a metre deep, and was functional again very shortly afterwards)

Even most of the bridges and low-level crossings will survive the water-flow..in the case of the lighter bridges the approach and depart-slopes get washed away and they take time to pack new wire-and-rock 'casons' and resurface. but essentially the water flows over the structures. On the bigger bridges like Letaba H1-6 they are robust and only the lightly-fitted armco and handrails get bent off by big logs washed down in the flow: the engineered structures are solid.

Low-level crossings like the exit from Tamboti are probably not damaged at all...it was only deep slow-flowing water and unstable road-surface that forced vehicles to be left in camp and made evacuation necessary.

Two traffic oficials have been reported missing in the Komati River bordering the park, but these were unrelated to KNP activities. I have been searching the web extensively and haven't found any other factual evidence of deaths (unless someone else can add a link to facts on this).

View to the left from Letaba restaurant, this afternoon.

A week ago it was an almost dry riverbed, and on Thursday it was starting to fill up.

Just heard from most reliable source that Sirheni dam wall actually broke, which of course added to the force of the water. One can imagine the volume when the Shingwedzi, Phongolo and Pugwane all came together. Once again the power and awesome indifference of the natural system!

True, but in the case of the Luvuvhu the Limpopo actually prevents it from flowing. When the former comes down in flood, it forms a barrier as effectiive as a dam wall at the confluence. The Luvuvhu then stops flowing, and the water instead spreads sideways out into the floodplains on either bank. That's why the flooding can be so extensive from what is normally a fairly minor and marginally perennial river.

Johan

Does anyone have more photos of the affected camps and regions? I am especially worried about the damage to the riverine forests along the Luvuvu, Shingwedzi and Mhpongolo rivers and of course the Shingwedzi camp.

The name of the Kanniedood dam will probably be changed to Kannie-meer-water-vat-nie dam.

Its fairly complicated. They have budgets and insurance. And I am not totally sure who is responsible for the bridges and/or roads; if it is the park itself, or the province. Will try and find out.

As far as I know he does not have a website address Or you can say it is http://www.sanparks.org. Those were from facebook.

Shingwedzi:

Holy hell.. if you don't want to call that damage then I don't know what you are smoking..

To think we would have done a Big Birding weekend there from this Thursday..