The Bastille Day Festival, due to take place in Franschhoek this weekend, has been postponed due to storms that have battered the Western Cape all week.

The festival which celebrates the French Bastille Day holiday, attracts thousands of visitors to Franschhoek each year. Ruth McCourt, CEO of Franschhoek Tourism said the decision was taken after consultation with structural engineers and the event’s safety team.

“The decision to postpone was not taken lightly, but it was essential to ensure our annual celebration lives up to the months of hard work that define it”. The event will now take place from July 20-21.

Another tourist destination, the Malgas Pont in Swellendam, has also taken the decision to close, citing strong currents and rising water levels.

Evacuations have been ordered in Citrusdal and the Cape Winelands, and are under consideration in the areas of the Drakenstein region.

Disaster management teams have also been working to ensure that the Cederberg, Citrusdal and Wupperthal, which had been cut off due to road closures, could be accessed.

This comes as the province readies itself for another major cold front, due to make landfall on Thursday, bringing with it level 8 rain warnings for the City of Cape Town, Drakenstein, Stellenbosch and Witzenberg municipalities.

Speaking during a press conference held by Premier Alan Winde, SA Weather Service forecaster, Stella Nake, said a series of cold fronts would arrive in the province until the weekend. The first of these had made landfall on Sunday. A second followed on Tuesday, with additional cold fronts set to make landfall on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

‘Level 9 warning’

Of most concern for the province will be Thursday’s weather system. Colin Deiner, Chief Director for Disaster Management in the province said the floods that had caused major damage in the Western Cape in April, had been classified with a level nine warning, so the current level eight warning was being viewed “in a very serious light”.

That storm is predicted to bring with it between rainfalls of between 80-90mm, in addition to  the rains that have already fallen. Warnings are also in place for rain damage to roads, flooding, and mudslides, damaging winds and damaging waves.

The province is closely monitoring the Misverstand and Berg River Dams, and the Lourens and Eerste Rivers which pose some risk for flooding.

Deiner cautioned people to minimise travelling and to exercise safe driving. People have also been advised not to cross rivers or water bodies, even if the water levels appear low.

Winde also urged residents to obey evacuation and safety directives when given and to act responsibly. “Safety comes first,” he said.

A number of roads across the province remain closed, but the situation is fluid as teams work to reopen them, Western Cape Minister for Infrastructure, Tertius Simmers said.

Deiner said disaster teams were communicating with airports in the province, but no issues had been reported. Teams are also monitoring a vessel in distress which has beached off the West Coast. Deiner said maritime safety units were handling the situation, and the environmental risks were being monitored.