I've got so many I decided to start a thread. You can post your pic's of Durbans freaky weather here. There will be plenty more, because reports are that the bad weather aint over ........ yet!

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4082.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4083.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4084.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4107.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4111.jpg

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http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4132.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_4137.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/tidalwaves018.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/tidalwaves019.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/tidalwaves020.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/tidalwaves021.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/Durbanfloods7-1.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508032.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508052.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508112.jpg


http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508132.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508153.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508172.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508192.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/2-2076-0-0_508212.jpg

& theres more............

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0884.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0886.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0887.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0891.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0892.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0893.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0894.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0895.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0897.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0899.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0901.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0904.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0908.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0909.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0910.jpg

look at the size of these swells! SURFS UP DUDES!

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0918.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/IMG_0921.jpg

Umhloti beach

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01664.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01667.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01672.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01673.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01675.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01687.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/DSC01690.jpg

Those pics in umhloti are SCARY!!! the poor people cant even get to their homes!!!

Waves of 8m have been recorded at certain points. I wonder how the homes on la lucia beach are holding up cos they could be washed away!!

This is showing the sea's power...lets hope this never happens in Cape Town, for Clifton would disappear

Durban 'disaster tourists' at risk

19/03/2007 16:57 - (SA)

Verashni Pillay

Durban - "Disaster tourists" are risking life and limb by flocking to the coast to photograph the rubble-strewn disaster area.

The "Golden Mile" beachfront was pounded by massive surf in the early hours of Monday, leaving the area littered with debris.

ER24 operations manager Neil Noble told News24 on Monday that there were "hundreds of thousands" of people crowding the promenade, trying to take photos.

Noble said: "It's become something of a 'disaster tourism', with people taking photos and putting them up on websites."

Speaking from the beachfront, he said: "We just need one freak wave and that's it."

'Loss of life can be expected'

The emergency services warned: "At any time more swells could assault the beaches, and if the area is as congested as it is at the moment, loss of life can be expected."

Noble said that police, life guards and ER24 staff were trying to evacuate people from the area, using cordoning-off tape and loudspeakers.

"Some of them are listening, but most are not," he said. "People are bringing their kids down here, it's just not right."

Durban's weather office has confirmed that Monday and Tuesday could see even-bigger waves hitting the beleaguered coast, with the situation normalising by Wednesday once the winds have stopped.

this is sad, but how stupid are you to get so close!

Man washed out to sea in Durban
19/03/2007 19:09 - (SA)

Durban - A man was washed out to sea on Monday evening by strong surf that has battered the city's famed Golden Mile for the past 24 hours, said paramedics.

Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha said it appeared the man had been watching the heavy seas from the Sun Coast Casino when he was washed out to sea.

The man's identity or other details were not immediately available.

Helicopter sent out

All that was known was that it was a "white male". It was also not known whether the man was a guest at the casino hotel.

Botha said bystanders raised the alarm.

The Vodacom Netcare surf rescue helicopter was sent out to search for the man.

Waves of between six and eight metres have pounded KwaZulu-Natal's coastline since late on Sunday.

More pics from news24.com.... it is unreal the damage caused. With more dangerous waves from 2am til 6am on tuesday expected


http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5703.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5706.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5707.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5712.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5713.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5715.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5716.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5717.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/100_2100.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/100_2101.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/100_2102.jpg

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http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/100_2110.jpg

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http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/100_2118.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5610.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5623.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/IMG_5633.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/KZN_1.jpg

These are the effects in La Lucia, suburb of durban

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/SV2006_0921_111404.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/SV2006_0921_111408.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/SV2006_0921_111412.jpg

Effects in Ballito

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/THE%20WEATHER%20001.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/THE%20WEATHER%20010.jpg

http://galleries.media24.com/News24/3720/THE%20WEATHER%20012.jpg

Any idea how things look in Umhlanga?

Those pictures are absolutely amazing.

Surprisingly, so far (touch wood), not much damage has occured in umhlanga

KZN braces for more big waves

March 20 2007 at 04:36AM

By Tony Carnie and Bronwyn Gerretsen

Angry seas and towering seven-metre-high waves off KwaZulu-Natal subsided briefly on Monday night after inflicting the worst flood damage in many years.

And while the worst seems to be over, there were still concerns that the sea might deliver another blow during Tuesday's early morning high tide, scheduled to peak at around 4.10am.

Emergency staff were on standby to evacuate residents along several parts of the coast, though Durban officials said there was no reason for panic.

'The worst seems to be over'

Andrew Mather, the city's project chief for coastal policy, said: "This was the most spectacular sea I have ever seen off Durban, but the good news is that the worst seems to be over."

He said Ballito seemed to be the most severely affected area. Margate and Durban's central beachfront were also badly damaged.

The eThekwini Municipality closed off entrances to all beaches after early morning damage was caused to properties and businesses. Emergency services were on standby for further wind and wave damage along the city's coastline.

Emergency services battled to evacuate thousands of residents and sightseers along the Dolphin Coast on Monday after the severely destroyed beaches had become a local attraction.

Numerous North Coast beachfront properties were damaged, with some buildings and residential swimming pools collapsing under the pressure of the huge waves and eroding sands.

The first waves that hit the coast in the early hours left a trail of destruction, and emergency workers tried to avoid casualties by evacuating people before the afternoon waves hit the shore.

However, onlookers were more concerned with taking photographs and staring at the sea.

The Chief Fire Officer for the KwaDukuza Municipality, Adrian Barnes, said people were "completely blase" about the situation and were not co-operating with emergency workers.

Some restaurants along the beachfront were seriously damaged and were closed for the day.

Barnes said arrangements had been made for those people evacuated from their homes to spend the night in halls and churches, but it was difficult to mobilise people living on the beachfront to make their way to the alternative accommodation.

ER24 spokesperson Neil Noble said beachfront properties had been seriously damaged and there were even cases of telephone poles having fallen on to people's beds.

On the South Coast, six camp sites at the Scottburgh Caravan Park were flooded and people had to be relocated to other areas of the park.

The mini train on the main beach was washed away. The tidal pool was also under water.

Port Shepstone Country Club was heavily flooded. Some North Coast houses were half covered by sand.

Several people were helped or rescued. The body of a 30-year-old man was found washed up at Shelly Beach, on the South Coast.

He was believed to have been washed out to sea by the huge waves and strong current.

Addington Hospital had been placed on high alert, the provincial health department said on Monday night.

People seeking medical attention were urged to go to other institutions as preparations were being made should the need arise to evacuate the hospital.

In Durban, a disaster management joint operations committee had been formed, made up of senior officials from Metro Police, South African Police Services, as well as city's Emergency Services, Electricity, Water, Communications, Roads, Engineering and Parks and Recreation departments.

The drama started at about 4am on Monday when huge waves, up to seven metres high, slammed into the Durban beachfront, smashing the windows of several restaurants and causing chaos among staff waiting to knock off after their late night shifts.

The waves also tore chunks of concrete off the end of the promenade at Blue Lagoon and left the car park littered with rubble and debris.

Deputy Mayor Logie Naidoo said officials were worried about the number of people and vehicles crowding towards the beaches.

The public can report emergencies at 031 361 0000.

Further north, at Richards Bay, two large cargo ships collided during the weekend after they had dragged anchors in heavy winds.

The collision involved the 38 000 ton general bulk vessel the Angela Star and the 35 000 ton Greek cargo vessel Theareston.

Although no one was believed to have been injured, the Angela Star was reported to be heading to Durban Harbour for repairs, while the Theareston was still offshore at Richards Bay.

The early morning storm ripped out almost every shark net between Richards Bay and Port Edward.

Heavy seas also washed away a river boat and damaged the pathways leading to cottages at the popular Umngazi River Bungalows, near Port St Johns.


This article was originally published on page 1 of The Mercury on March 20, 2007

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?s...4317754C460261

I flew into Durbs from JHB yesterday after a month away and it was scary. I have never seen the sea look that bad. The waves were white (from the crashing) and at least 50-60 meters wide. I have never seen anything like this. It will take us a long time to recover. If this is a precursor to the effects of global warming, all the coastal areas in the world are in for a bad time. I hope this never happens in Cape Town. It's so flat in parts, the sea will just continue inland for a km. Moreover, the few beaches near the city center (Clifton etc) will disappear forever.

My mate went surfing in them yest, he f*cking crazy, telling me its the best swells ever & he caught a massive one with the longest tube his ever ridden. I gonna klaap him on the head the next time I see him.

more pic's from yesterday:

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72140.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72141.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72142.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72143.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72144.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72145.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72146.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72147.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72148.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72149.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72150.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72151.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72152.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72153.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72155.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72156.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72157.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72158.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72159.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72160.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72161.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72162.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72163.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/STA72164.jpg

A house in Ballito, only 1 word comes to mind when I look at this picture ................................................... EISH!

http://i7.tinypic.com/2ldj8m1.jpg

OMG!!

you sure thats ballito? cos it looks awefully similar to the house at the end of the south beach road in umhloti.

but either way that is hectic!! that house could be structurally ruined

whereever it is its fucked

shit guys hope you are all ok. some of those waves look horrifying!! And I thought we are the Cape of Storms?!!!

Its very sad to see one of my fave cities in such a mess. But as your council is on the ball Im sure it will be cleaned up in time for my visit in June.

Some more aftermath...


http://farm1.static.flickr.com/153/428354926_e7ea6edcd2.jpg?v=0

OMG!!

you sure thats ballito? cos it looks awefully similar to the house at the end of the south beach road in umhloti.

but either way that is hectic!! that house could be structurally ruined

I dno, the email said ballito, but thats nothng check this, I had a guy from NPA who sent me this, an Oil Tanker that had to wait outside the harbour took these pic's!

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/SELKIRK_SETTLER_1.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/SELKIRK_SETTLER_2.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/SELKIRK_SETTLER_3.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/amgosai/SELKIRK_SETTLER_4.jpg

u guys gotto check this out, last weeks storm, captured on video, its on the ECR website, its so cool!

right click "save target as" (http://blog.ecr.co.za/newswatch/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/simons-storm.wmv)

Unfortunately, whoever sent you those pictures is playing tricks. Those pictures are named Selkirk Settler. I did a search for a ship with that name. Turns out the Selkirk Settler was renamed the Spruceglen a few years ago, and now sails the Great Lakes here in North America. And those those pictures were taken in 1987. Click this link (http://www.boatnerd.com/pictures/fleet/spruceglen.htm), and scroll to the bottom. You'll see the exact same pictures that your friend sent you. Except they were actually taken by the ship's Second Mate in a North Atlantic storm on 13 February 1987. Sorry. :ohno:

They're cool pictures nonetheless!

I took a drive to Blue Lagoon yesterday and it was wasted. The pier that used to have tons of cars parked (and Pakistani CD and DVD salesmen) is totally trashed. The sandbank that formed the lagoon no longer exists. The sea now comes right into the river. It's unreal. Those who live close should check it out.

I also have AMAZING pics from Margate (and Uvongo) but am still posting-challenged. Can someone send me their personal e-mail in a personal message and I'll send it you to to post. Thanks.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/186/427874396_f03b635f72.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/65/427874838_6048b949ed.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/186/427915544_d30393d825.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/162/427915478_bd4315a0e0.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/173/427857595_82243cc0e0.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/152/427857143_f2c7c034dc.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/177/427185737_e108897b0b.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/148/427185454_ea3f16c3e5.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/184/427185238_bbd99a3360.jpg?v=0

this is sad, but how stupid are you to get so close!

Man washed out to sea in Durban
19/03/2007 19:09 - (SA)

Durban - A man was washed out to sea on Monday evening by strong surf that has battered the city's famed Golden Mile for the past 24 hours, said paramedics.

Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha said it appeared the man had been watching the heavy seas from the Sun Coast Casino when he was washed out to sea.

The man's identity or other details were not immediately available.

Helicopter sent out

All that was known was that it was a "white male". It was also not known whether the man was a guest at the casino hotel.

Botha said bystanders raised the alarm.

The Vodacom Netcare surf rescue helicopter was sent out to search for the man.

Waves of between six and eight metres have pounded KwaZulu-Natal's coastline since late on Sunday.

Although it seems reasonable to assume he was stupid - i remember going down to durban after a big storm. The waves had mostly abated and there was sand strewn right across the boulevard. 4 old people were walking along the top of the beach near the old sand pebbles building. The sea just suddenly rose and a wave (more like a rush of water than a breaker) just moved the whole sea forward 20m and collected all of them and pulled them out back to the seas normal position where they all managed to escape it.

Unless I had seen it myself I never would have imagined it possible. I reckon any one of us could have been similarly caught.

Geeeez Mo those are hectic!

Apparently our place down at Leisure Bay, which is right on the beach, was OK, but the pedestrian bridge leading from the complex to the beach was washed away, and the sand dunes were also washed away. But luckily no structural damage was down to the properties, or else our apartment would have been toast, and we would be putting in a gazillion insurance claims..

Unfortunately, whoever sent you those pictures is playing tricks. Those pictures are named Selkirk Settler. I did a search for a ship with that name. Turns out the Selkirk Settler was renamed the Spruceglen a few years ago, and now sails the Great Lakes here in North America. And those those pictures were taken in 1987. Click this link (http://www.boatnerd.com/pictures/fleet/spruceglen.htm), and scroll to the bottom. You'll see the exact same pictures that your friend sent you. Except they were actually taken by the ship's Second Mate in a North Atlantic storm on 13 February 1987. Sorry. :ohno:

They're cool pictures nonetheless!

cool, thanx for that, Now I can swear this dickhead from NPA, I really thought this was from Durban :bash:

The 1st 2 pic of Mo's (the overturned ship and containers) has been exposed as fake by Durban harbour authorities. This apparently occured elsewhere in the world.

Origin of giant waves explained
Tony Carnie
March 23 2007 at 10:59AM

The extraordinary waves that wreaked havoc along the KwaZulu-Natal coast on Monday had very little to do with high spring tides, or the much-publicised 18.6-year alignment of the Earth, moon and sun.

Quite simply, it was a very powerful and unusual storm at sea that drove up the height of waves to 8m to 12m, the highest waves recorded along this part of the coast for at least 23 years.

This is according to SA Weather Service principal researcher Ian Hunter, who laid the blame for the flooding and destruction of property on an intense "cut-off" low pressure system - the same type of weather phenomenon that caused the September 1987 floods in Durban and the Laingsberg floods of January 1981.

In an article posted on the weather service's website this week, Hunter said cut-off lows often led to very high coastal wind speeds as well as wave swells that hit the coast at odd angles, causing more erosion.

'Spring high tide level in Durban would have been no more than 50cm above an average high tide'
Hunter noted that the build-up of the bad weather and the point of maximum intensity on Monday morning had been captured by weather prediction models in other countries three to four days in advance.

"Not only was the location correctly predicted at this stage - the forecast intensity was also very close to what actually transpired. Similarly, the global wave models were also foreseeing the 10m waves analysed off the east coast, with a lead time of three to four days."

His comments have raised questions about whether the SA Weather Service warning notices adequately reflected the severity and danger of the impending storm.

Records show that the weather service did in fact issue a warning at 5pm on the Saturday preceding the storm, warning of gale-force winds and predicting "very rough seas with wave heights of 5m or more".

Unlike the weather bureaus of the United Kingdom and the United States, for example, the SA Weather Service did not have a "surge" model that was able to analyse a wider variety of data such as beach slopes and sea depths that contributed to the power of waves at different locations on the coast.

However, in his article analysing the cause of the freak weather event, Hunter noted that the severe storm almost 700km out to sea had coincided with the new moon and vernal equinox - planetary events that result in high spring tides.

Hunter acknowledged that the high spring tides contributed to some extent to the higher water levels - but if there had been no bad weather at the time, the spring high tide level in Durban would have been no more than 50cm above an average high tide.

"Some mention has also been made of the nodal tidal signal (which happens every 18.6 years) implying that this was a major (contributing) factor."

However, in Hunter's opinion, this cyclical alignment of the Earth, sun and moon was not nearly as significant as the wind- and storm-induced "surge" effect that accounted for the monster-sized waves.

It also emerged on Thursday that specialised wave height measuring equipment at Durban Harbour was on the blink on Monday morning, making it impossible to determine the exact height of the waves in Durban. However, average wave heights of 8.5m (as well as occasional wave heights of just over 12m) were measured at Richards Bay on Monday morning by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.

Marius Rossouw, a coastal research engineer at the CSIR in Cape Town, said it might be possible to do some "hindcasting" to calculate the Durban wave heights, but it was likely that they were very similar to those measured at Richards Bay.

He noted that waves as high as 8m were recorded about once a year along the Cape south-west coast, but such high waves were extremely rare on the KZN coast.


This article was originally published on page 3 of The Mercury on March 23, 2007

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=14&art_id=vn20070323010427460C535787

Durban climate crisis related to global warming

March 23, 2007, 07:30

International Environmental Scientists say that the huge waves that lashed KwaZulu-Natal and other parts of the coastline this week are another example of the effects of climate change. Climate change is one of the themes at this year's Science Festival in Grahamstown.

Durban's beach front is the latest victim of bad weather. Tidal waves hit the area, with damage amounting to half a billion rands. Other areas in the country have been hit by tornados, droughts and floods. These climate changes increase the burdens on households already suffering.

SciFest organisers say this year's festival will have a specific focus on global warming.

Hundreds are expected to take part in this year's festival that ends next Tuesday. Experts say climate change hampers development as infrastructure and human life is often destroyed.

http://www.sabcnews.com/south_africa/general/0,2172,145921,00.html