The South African Weather Services said this weekend’s storm surge that wreaked havoc along the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal coast lines were caused by a strong low pressure system in the Atlantic ocean.
Forecaster Wayne Venter said this was driven by strong winds over a large part of the ocean.
The winds ranged between 80 -110 kilometres per hour.
“These winds blew over a long time, causing the ocean’s waves to be bigger and stronger.”
Venter said the waves were almost nine metres high in KwaZulu-Natal.
This weekend there was devastation as the storm surge swept through parts the Western Cape coastline.
According to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), a 93-year-old woman was swept off her feet by a wave that went through a car parking lot at Leentjiesklip along the Garden Route on Saturday evening. She died in the incident.
On Sunday, more than seven people were injured after a freak wave struck a restaurant on the KZN South Coast.
Five people were transported to hospital.
A video of the waves crashing into the beachfront establishment has gone viral on social media.
In addition to the strong winds, Venter said the combination of spring tides and the new moon phase moved a lot of the water to the shore.
While many are urging patrons to avoid the beaches and coastlines, Venter said no storm surges have been predicted for the coming week.
“The SA Weather Services had issued a storm surge warning on Thursday for the Western Cape coastline and on Saturday for KZN.”
However, he urged beachgoers to check the tide patterns and look for any significant weather warnings.
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