Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina has received a preliminary report into what led to the failure of three dams located in Riverlands farm in the Swartland Local Municipality.

Majodina granted departmental engineers time to conduct diligent and adequate investigation into what led to the failure of three farm dams located in Riverlands in the Western Cape.

This follows the failure of three farm dams that breached, resulting in flooding that caused severe property and infrastructure damage to the affected area, leading to hundreds of people being provided with humanitarian assistance.

The department said the preliminary report into what led to the failure of the dams has been finalised and handed over to the Minister on Monday, following a two-week investigation.

"Upon studying the report, Minister Majodina will make public the findings thereof in due course," the department said.

Majodina has commended the team of engineers, led by the Head of Specialist Unit: Dam Safety, Wally Ramokopa, for swift action to avert further disaster in the area, and investigating the cause of the failure of the dams.

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While the Department of Water and Sanitation does not own the failed dams, it exercises a regulatory function over all the dams in South Africa.