It has been more than four decades since the sleepy Karoo town experienced what is arguably the worst flood in South Africa’s history, where 425 mm of rain fell in one day, and 102 lives were lost.
Today, this remains the most prominent fact known about the town: that on 25 January 1981, it was the epicentre of one of South Africa’s worst natural disasters.
The Buffels River catchment overflowed on the morning of 25 January after a cut-off low released 425mm of rainfall over to days in a town that only receives 175 mm annually. The river’s current was so strong that people’s bodies were found as far as Mossel Bay.
Here are some images of the tragic day.
Pictures: Francis Van Wyk
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