{"id":859552,"date":"2026-05-06T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=859552"},"modified":"2026-05-06T11:01:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T09:01:46","slug":"schools-shut-down-in-south-africa-due-to-severe-storm-warnings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/government\/859552\/schools-shut-down-in-south-africa-due-to-severe-storm-warnings\/","title":{"rendered":"125 schools shut down in South Africa due to severe storm warnings"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Severe weather conditions have forced the temporary closure of dozens of schools in the Western Cape, as authorities respond to warnings of heavy rainfall and potential flooding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Western Cape Education Minister David Maynier confirmed<\/a> that schools in parts of the Eden and Central Karoo Education District will be closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The schools are closed on Wednesday, 6 May, and Thursday, 7 May 2026, following consultations with disaster management officials and weather authorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the interests of learner and teacher safety, and after extensive consultation with the Provincial Disaster Management Centre and the South African Weather Service (SAWS), a decision has been taken to close schools in certain areas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The closures affect all public ordinary and special needs schools in specific circuits identified as high risk due to the severe rainfall warnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These include Circuits 3 and 8 in George, Circuit 4 in Knysna, and Circuits 5 and 6 in Oudtshoorn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Maynier, affected schools have already received official communication from the department and have been instructed to inform parents of the closures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll other schools in the Western Cape will be open unless approval has been granted for closure, which will be done on a case-by-case basis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The department stressed that its default position is always to keep schools open and only close schools in exceptional circumstances, but noted that the severity of the current weather warnings necessitated precautionary action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities will continue to monitor conditions closely in the coming days, with the aim of reopening schools as soon as it is safe to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will continuously monitor and evaluate the situation to ensure that schools can reopen as soon as possible,\u201d Maynier said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At this stage, all schools are expected to reopen on Friday, 8 May<\/strong>. However, this is subject to change depending on weather conditions later in the week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will, however, evaluate the weather prediction for the end of the week to determine whether any individual school closures are necessary for the remainder of the week,\u201d Maynier added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A full list of the schools can be viewed below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n