One has just got to love Capetonians when it rains in Cape Town and especially when there is thunder and lightning to accompany those wet little droplets falling from a gun-metal coloured sky. Photographers race to their cars and drive to the beach front hoping to get that perfectly timed shot of lightning bolts flashing towards the earth and sea. Mother nature did not disappoint us and neither did the photographers on this particular occasion.
For those who do not know, Cape Town is under serious water restrictions at the moment due to a severe drought which almost crippled our economy. Okay, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration but when Government ignore the seriousness of the situation and locals have to contend with a mere 50 litres per person a day for everything, it does feel like a crippling situation.
Back at the Aviva Volunteer House, management stepped up to the plate and had a borehole set up with huge water tanks and filters to keep the showers flowing and the toilets flushing and the pool filled. In all the time I have been working at the Volunteer House, I have never seen so many empty 5 litre bottles which once contained fresh mineral water. The ongoing heatwave left everyone feeling dehydrated and it was a concern that the water from the taps was not pure enough for drinking purposes, although some volunteers drank it and said it was fine and they never got sick. We shudder to think what happens to those empty plastic water containers as they cannot be reused for long periods of time.
As winter approaches, we are hopeful for long rainy days, dams and reservoirs filling up to capacity and our lives (with water) returning to normal.
Aviva Volunteers 