RAINY and cold conditions are expected to set in this coming Friday and throughout the weekend over the central and south-eastern parts of the country.
This was announced by the South African Weather Service (SAWS).
In a statement, the weather service’s Luthando Masimini said provinces expected to be particularly affected included the eastern parts of the Northern and Eastern Cape, Free State, North West, Gauteng as well as KZN and the Highveld region of Mpumalanga.
Masimini said associated with these rainy conditions, localised flooding was likely to affect the agricultural sector, infrastructure and settlements over the North West, northern parts of Free State and Gauteng on Friday. This included the eastern parts of Northern Cape, northern and eastern parts of Eastern Cape as well as the western parts of KZN and the Mpumalanga Highveld on Saturday.
“Localised disruptions to beach-front activities as well as incidents of damage to coastal infrastructure may also occur along the coastal region between Port Alfred and Sodwana Bay.
“A general clearing of rainy conditions can be expected on Sunday over Northern Cape, the western parts of both the North West and Free State as well as north-western parts of the Eastern Cape,” said Masimini.
He said the clearing trend from west occurrences of localised flooding were expected to persist on Sunday over the eastern parts of North West, Free State and Eastern Cape.
He said the wet spell would be accompanied by cold to very cold conditions over the southern and south-eastern interior of the country on Friday, spreading to the central and eastern by Saturday.
“Moreover, light snowfalls can be expected over the eastern and southern parts of Lesotho and surrounding Drakensberg Mountains on Saturday evening and Sunday night. A sharp upper-air trough will form seaward of the south-west coast on Friday.”
Masimini said the weather service urged public members to avoid crossing rivers and swollen streams, especially in cases where the water was more than ankle-deep.
It also recommended moving to higher ground if rising floodwaters threatened one’s safety.
“We will continue to monitor further developments relating to the weather system, and issue updates. The public is urged and encouraged to regularly follow weather forecasts on TV and radio.”
