Building a snowman in spring
KZN weather is going through unexpected ups and downs.
THE weather patterns in KwaZulu-Natal and some parts of the country have been rather strange.
Drakensberg was at a low of -4 degrees on Tuesday, 3 November and experienced some snow, which is uncommon in spring.
The province has experienced very little rain, which has contributed to droughts and water shedding.
The eThekwini Municipality said on the evening of 2 November that heavy winds were predicted, but did not encourage residents to remain indoors.
The normal wind speeds would reach up to 55km/h between 2pm and 8pm. The wind gusts – those sudden rushes of wind – would peak at about 72km/h.
The predictions were expected to drop in wind speed at sunrise on 3 November.
Beaches remain closed due to the windy conditions. No bathers are allowed on the beach.
Residents are advised to be cautious during this period, particularly those in the informal settlements, who are urged to attempt to secure roof sheeting as heavy winds could cause damage. Tacking the roof with extra nails or adding some weight to the sheeting might assist to hold it in place.
Some parts of Durban are currently without electricity as a result of strong winds affecting electricity cables. A light pole has fallen in Rutherford Street, South Beach due to the heavy winds. The situation is being addressed.
“The city requests all effected customers to bear with us and report power outages to the electricity call centre (080 131 3111) in order for our teams to speedily attend to the affected areas. Customers are urged to report a fault once and use their allocated reference number to follow up on the progress of their enquiry,” said eThekwini Municipality’s communications head, Tozi Mthethwa.
The Emergency Control and Disaster Management Unit is monitoring the situation. All emergency calls should be logged to 031 361 0000.
