Planned power cuts in parts of South Africa have been suspended amid heavy flooding.
Intense downpours caused extensive damage in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces over the weekend.
After flooding continued into Monday, state-owned power utility Eskom said the deluge had caused “widespread damage to electricity infrastructure”.
In the two affected provinces, load-shedding “will be suspended with immediate effect”, Eskom said.
Despite being Africa’s most developed economy, South Africa has been experiencing load-shedding – or an organised series of rolling blackouts – for the past 15 years. The power cuts are needed because the system cannot cope with the demand for energy.
Eskom added that the aim of Monday’s suspension is to aid the safe restoration of electricity supplies, while load-shedding will continue in areas unaffected by the floods.