Stay Warm This Weekend - SA in for a Chilly One as Two Systems Brew

Snowing Systems Snow Frosted Cold Front Chill

Photo Credit: On File

Two weather systems are making their way across South Africa, bringing rain, snowy and chilly weather to most parts over the weekend.

South Africa (13 August 2021) – The South African Weather Service (SAWS) released a report detailing the two weather systems that are hitting South Africa this weekend. Wayne Venter complied the detailed report that sees rainy, cold weather from one system and snowfall from the other.

What we can tell for sure is that most parts of South Africa are going to be feeling some kind of chill this weekend so let’s prepare and get warm.

So how are these systems going to affect our lives this weekend? Let’s take a look.

An intense cold front was set to make landfall in the Western Cape yesterday and spread along the coastline towards the Eastern Cape and up to KwaZulu-Natal. This was the first system to hit, the second will start to develop today and move along the interior of South Africa, but the good thing is it will bring along rainfall to parts of South Africa that are considered seasonally uncommon for this time of year.

Once the Western Cape has had its cold spell today, it is set to get milder. The rest will affect parts of South Africa as follows:

“Widespread rainfall of 15 to 35mm is expected over the southern parts of the Western Cape and the south-western parts of the Eastern Cape. 24-hour accumulated rainfall of up to 40 to 50mm is also likely along coastal and adjacent mountainous regions of the eastern Garden Route District of the Western Cape and the south coast and adjacent interior of the Eastern Cape, which may result in localised flooding of susceptible areas and roads.

Snowfall is expected over the eastern high-lying areas of the Western Cape, spreading to the high-lying areas of the Eastern Cape from the afternoon into the evening, persisting into Friday where some areas could experience traffic disruptions to some roads and mountain passes. Furthermore, snowfall is also expected to spread to the Drakensberg regions of KwaZulu-Natal from Thursday night onwards. The good news is that weather conditions will generally start to improve over the Western Cape during Friday, while cold conditions can be expected to arrive over parts of Mpumalanga and southern Gauteng on this day.

A second weather system, a cut-off low-pressure system (an upper-air low-pressure system displaced northwards and isolated from the original westerly wave regime), will develop during Friday over the western interior of the country. As a result, windy and cold conditions will prevail across most parts of the country during Friday and Saturday (13 to 14 August 2021). Showers and thundershowers will develop in association with the cut-off low, affecting the eastern parts of the Northern Cape, Free State, as well as the northern and eastern parts of the Eastern Cape.

Rainfall of 30 to 40mm can be expected over the extreme eastern parts of the Northern Cape, the south-western parts of the Free State and the extreme northern interior of the Eastern Cape, where very cold conditions will persist. Due to the dynamics of the upper-air system (characterised by very cold, unstable air aloft), some of the thunderstorms may become severe, resulting in large amounts of small hail. Snowfall is likely to continue over the northern high-lying areas of the Eastern Cape, Drakensberg mountains (encompassing the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal) and the extreme eastern parts of Free State, while light snowfall can be expected over the southern Free State and south-eastern Northern Cape. Last-mentioned snowfalls may result in further disruptions to traffic on major routes as well as the possible closure of mountain passes. In order to mitigate unexpected stock losses, it is strongly recommended that stock farmers move their smaller livestock to shelter at an early stage, ahead of the arrival of the winter weather.”

So are you prepared for the colder weather? Pull out those snuggly winter blankets, put on a batch of warming soup, bring the animals in and if you can, support someone in need. These cold snaps always bring with them, fires and loss, so lend a helping hand wherever you can.

Here are some essential safety tips to remember too.

Don’t leave candles unattended.
Place a grid in front of your fire to avoid any fire sparks causing trouble.
Make sure a room is well ventilated when using fire to avoid carbon monoxide inhalation.
All heaters and heat sources should be switched off before going to sleep.
Make sure heating appliances are approved by the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS).