Laingsburg, Western Cape
Encyclopedia
History
John Laing
John Laing plc is a British developer and operator of privately financed, public sector infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, hospitals and schools through Public-Private Partnership and Private Finance Initiative arrangements...
who was Commissioner of Crown Lands at the time.
The town was laid out in 1881 and became a municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in 1904. The Laingsburg Local Municipality
Laingsburg Local Municipality
Laingsburg Municipality is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. As of 2001, the population is 6,681. Its municipality code is WC051.- Government :The mayor of the municipality is Willem Theron of the DA...
has since been expanded to include Bergsig, Goldnerville and Matjiesfontein
Matjiesfontein
Matjiesfontein is a settlement in Central Karoo District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa....
.
The Laingsburg Flood
The Buffels River had already overflowed its banks at around 8:00 on the morning of Sunday 25th January 1981. Just north of the railway bridge at Laingsburg, two rivers - the Baviaans and the Wilgerhout, flow into the Buffels. The level of the water started to rise in town at about 12:00, and at 14:00, the Laingsburg CBDCentral business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
was almost fully covered. The water rose by the second, and there was no time for those still at home to take any belongings with them. Most of the residents were used to water level rising up to their doorsteps from time to time, particularly those located next to the Buffels River.
Those trapped in their houses fled to their roofs for safety, but eventually the roofs collapsed. The speed and volume of water was higher and stronger in the southern part of the town because of the obstruction of the river by the road and railway bridges. Houses were rapidly swept away along with the people.
As a result of the flood, about 104 people from Laingsburg lost their lives. About 12 people were washed downstream and eventually rescued at the Floriskraal Dam
Floriskraal Dam
Floriskraal Dam is a dam on the Buffels River, near Laingsburg, Western Cape, South Africa. It was established in 1957.- References :* from the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry...
about 21 kilometres (13 mi) from the town. Many bodies were unidentified or never found.
Today the flood level can still be seen on some buildings in Laingsburg. It is also indicated in town by means of a signboard. Flood experts believe that this was the biggest flood that Laingsburg had experienced in many years.
Geography
Laingsburg is situated along the N1N1 (South Africa)
The N1 is a South African National Route, running from Cape Town to Beit Bridge on the border with Zimbabwe. It is also the main road link between Johannesburg and Cape Town, and forms the first section of the famed Cape to Cairo Road....
route, at Lat: -33.20, Long: 20.85, in the Western Cape
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...
province of South Africa.
The town is situated in the Great Karoo, a semi-desert region of South-Africa. The town's total rainfall is about 150mm per year. The main water supply is the Buffels River. Summers are extremely hot and dry, with temperatures usually exceeding 30°C. Winters are crisp to sometimes very cold, with snow occasionally occurring in the surrounding region.
Economy
Laingsburg's economy is mainly based on farming of goatGoat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
s, sheep, lucerne
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
(Alfalfa) fruit and vegetables.