Weather bureau warns of heavy rain in KwaZulu-Natal, icy weather to subside soon

The South African Weather Services has forecast heavy rain, which may cause localised flooding in the next two days in north-east KwaZulu-Natal. It has also warned of cold temperatures – especially in high-lying areas in the Drakensberg, it could be as cold as minus 10 degrees Celsius. Forecaster Thandi Gumede says there is a 30 to 60% chance of rain in other parts of the province and an 80% chance on the north coast.

“The Eastern parts will include areas like the Umkhanyakhude District as well as some parts of King Cetswayao, and the eastern parts of Zululand – including areas like Phongolo, Nongoma, Jozini, Umhlabuyalingana, Mtubatuba coming towards the south through to Umfolozi including some parts of Umhlathuze, which includes Richards Bay,” says Gumede.

The forecasters also say yesterday was the coldest day in eight years in Gauteng. The SA Weather Services says the current cold weather pattern in some parts of the country will continue until tomorrow afternoon. Many other parts of the interior are also expected to start warming up towards the end of the week.

Light snowfalls could be experienced in parts of the Free State, Mpumalanga and the North West. Gauteng, where some light rain has been forecast, is expected to remain cold today.

Forecaster Edward Elgelbrecht says the weather will improve before the weekend. “The last time we had these extreme temperatures where there was even a possibility of snow over north-eastern parts of the country was back in 2012 when we had snow over Gauteng. So, it’s a similar system that we have currently. Previous winters have been fairly mild, especially for the interior of the country. This winter, definitely, it seems like a bit colder than the previous ones. In terms of another cold front, we do expect one again on Saturday to reach the Western Cape.”