Limpopo community rally in their flood-wrecked village

Terrifying amounts of water streamed through Mbaula in Giyani recently when the river beside the village broke its banks as a result of sustained heavy rains. But the residents have vowed to rebuild

- By Lerato Mutsila

Destroyed homes in Mbaula village, Limpopo, are testament to the water's power.

(Photos: Felix Dlangamandla)

I have always known about rivers, dams, rainfall patterns and the quiet, persistent ways water shapes our landscapes. These are things we engage with daily, so I understood water's nature - its necessity, its patience and its destructive potential.

On paper, floods are statistics: millimetres of rain, breached river levels, damaged infrastructure.

But it was only when Daily Maverick's children's reporter, Tamsin Metelerkamp, photojournalist Felix Dlangamandla and I walked through Mbaula village beside the now quiet Mbaula River, one of the hardest-hit areas in Giyani, Limpopo, that the true power of water fully dawned on us.

Climate adaptation must mean early warning systems that reach rural villages, and land-use planning that respects floodplains