Reflections of a (flooded) Balcony (PICTURES)

So everyone thought the storm hoax was a hoax? Well it was and wasn't. I had an urgent situation brewing - not quite in back yard - on the balcony. After all the rain we had, the balcony was filled with a foot of water. Yes, having moved to Jo-burg this wasn't high on my list of Things To Worry About.

I did do a thorough reconnoiter of the balcony, but found no plug or drainage hole. So either the weather is to blame and we're getting too much rain in one go, or the architects were a bit amiss, failing to design a bit of drainage. Or it has functioned over time as a paddling pool for Jewish families over the years (the house is situated in a very Jewish community - so much so that on Saturday's you see lots of dark suited cowboys headed towards an OK Corral). And maybe the kids are being encouraged not to stray beyond these balcon- Nah.

So using the most sophisticated technology available, I fashioned a siphon. It's not as simple as it sounds. You can't have any air bubbles in the length of hose. You need to fill the hole hose with water, and then dip the head into your chosen drainage basin (secured by a solid metal indoor bike trainer stand).

Once you release the end, as water flows out the other end onto the lawn, you have your gravity-induced suction taking place.

It took about 3 hours, but got there in the end. It's not dry as a bone, but at least I don't have to fear rising sea (technically rainwater) levels at 1700 metres in the heart of the Highveld, in a first floor loft apartment. Think I am going to braai on the balcony tomorrow, unless I join Alan for lunch.

Hoax? (Gauteng Weather Damage PICTURES)

Think all those rumors were just rumors? This is a picture of the damage done to a Gauteng resident’s balcony by the gale force winds that swept through Gauteng last night.

Weather Warnings a Hoax?

Were the weather warnings a hoax? Actually, they weren't. To start off they were based on cogent but amorphous information. I received emails from staff at Net Care 911 (I can name names), but these were not official warnings. The weather bureau were also concerned, because some of the atmospheric conditions were, they thought, conducive to extreme weather.

And in fact we've had some incredible storms over the last few days in Lenasia (where someone died), and at a large school - I forget where - which had its roof torn off. The latter story made SABC news, since the school was concerned they might not have a place to right exams. This same school made the news when children were caught in rising flood waters, clutching school furniture.

So I think the internal staff at NetCare for example contacted their pals and issued an 'under-the-radar' warning, and from there, it got exaggerated into tornadoes and what not.

Two things emerged out of this though: on the positive side, there was an extraordinary awareness of WHAT IS GOING ON OUTSIDE THE OFFICE. On the other hand, the people who panicked and went home only to be caught in traffic snarls are going to laugh it off next time, and call it Crying Wolf. This blase attitude is opar for the course in places like the Florida panhandle, where oldies claim to have survived countless storms and false alarms and they aren't about to 'run' now. In reality, we're going to see this sort of thing - potent and destructive forces of nature - happening more and more in our lifetimes.

My own feeling was how the climate change-global warming zeitgeist actually came to the surface. It semed to me a lot of people were repressing the veracity of this, and then to receive emails about having your belongings confiscated by the weather, that just struck very close to home, and brought it to the surface. People verbalised their concerns, and then acted on them. At last.