"In 2012, We Had A Severe Drought On The Farm, And Then No Rain For Five Years"

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I married a farmer, Jan, and we did irrigation farming for 21 years in another area. But in 2004 we bought back this family farm. The guy that owned this farm didn’t want this any more. My husband always told me that he wanted to give my history back to me. A few years before this drought started, we realised something was going on. In 2012, we had a severe flood on the farm, and then no rain for the next five years. It got so dry that you can feel in the air that this is going to be devastating. We are used to seasonal droughts in the Karoo. We plan our whole farming business around this to make sure we can go through this. This one was terrible. This one did not stop.

In 2017, the bees came to our house looking for food. Bees always find food in the fields. I never had the situation where bees come for help. They came in swarms to have something to eat. We made syrup for them. They are unbelievably happy the moment you put down this trace of sugar. They call more bees. For me, this was a clear sign that there is nothing left in the field, not even a little something left.

This little river on the farm, which never dries up totally, went totally dry. The fish died. The fish eagles left. Tortoises died. It was stinking of death. We had to feed the tortoises as well. They are shy animals. They’re very on their own. They fed on the little bit of grass left in the gardens. Then it became quiet. It was like the birds stopped singing. The sky was brighter than ever. It was white. Everything was very dry.

A hydrogeologist told me: “Listen, you are in the first phases of a very, very, very severe drought. This is going to be a long one and it’s going to be a hard one. You are going to have water difficulties on the farm,” which we did. “You are going to have extreme temperatures,” which we did. “You are going to lose more or less 40% of your grazing on the farm,” which we did due to this drought. There are no finances left, so you have to take an extra loan on your farm. All savings go to the animal feed. Everything you can sell goes into animal feed. Most of the time it’s not enough to fill a sheep or a goat’s tummy. You are confronted with hungry and dependent animals. You are worried constantly.

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2024/nov/23/disaster-is-about-caring-im-not-selfish-any-more-this-is-climate-breakdown