A Western Cape man carries a heavy bundle of firewood as cold and wet weather gripped large parts of the province
Garden Route residents have no choice but to throw away food that has gone bad in their fridges and freezers, sit in dark homes without water, and wonder how much longer they can survive as a blackout that started more than a fortnight ago continues to cripple daily life and small businesses.
By Thursday afternoon, many residents had entered their 16th day without reliable electricity or water after repeated incidents of cable theft.
This follows freak weather earlier this month that battered towns along the south-eastern coast of the Western Cape, including the Crags, Plettenberg Bay, Sedgefield, and parts of George.
The severe weather has claimed at least 11 lives across the province, with deaths linked to flooding, fallen trees, and other storm-related incidents
