The Lowveld’s in for a very wet weekend
Widespread heavy rain this weekend and early next week, from December 10 to 12, is predicted for the Lowveld.
The SAWS issued a statement that a welcome spell of rain is predicted to fall over the eastern half of the country in the days ahead.
According to the service, there is a significant risk of flooding or river flooding, associated with persistently heavy rain, which could cause significant disruption over some provinces.
⛈️🌦️Weather outlook for today, partly cloudy and warm, with hot conditions expected over the northern areas with isolated thunderstorms expected over the north eastern areas. There will be light showers along the south coast.
⚠️Warning: Severe Thunderstorms. pic.twitter.com/GSvPI2Nets
— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) December 8, 2023
“The cause of the widespread rainy weather will be the combination of three distinct circulation features in the atmosphere over southern Africa. Firstly, a cut-off low is expected to develop in the upper air of the atmosphere over the central interior during the latter half of the weekend. Secondly, a surface trough is expected to begin intensifying, in sympathy with the deepening upper-air cut-off low. The combination of these two features is well-known to have the potential to drive episodes of widespread, often heavy, rain over southern Africa.”
Saturday 09/12/2023: Isolated to scattered showers and thundershowers over the eastern half of the country.
Sunday 10/12/2023: Isolated to scattered showers and thundershowers over the eastern half of the country, but widespread over the North Eastern parts. pic.twitter.com/vzkJMHW8TF
— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) December 7, 2023
Also read: IN PHOTOS: Storm wreaks havoc in Mbombela and surrounds
The SAWS said a third significant factor is expected to elevate the risk of heavy rainfall from this system. “This factor is the expected introduction of a stream of tropically sourced moisture, drawn southwards over the central and eastern interior of South Africa, under the influence of the circulation associated with the surface trough and upper-air system respectively. Tropically sourced air is well known to be associated with rainfall of a potentially heavy, widespread nature. Initially the weather this weekend will be relatively settled, with just a small chance of thunderstorms over some of the eastern provinces on Friday and Saturday, December 8 and 9.”
On Sunday December 10, weather conditions will begin to deteriorate significantly as the cut-off low manifests itself over the northern parts of the Northern Cape, introducing marked instability into the atmosphere to drive widespread showers and thundershowers.
Also read: IN PHOTOS: Storm damage to Mbombela and surrounding areas
“As tropical air begins to stream southward over Botswana and South Africa, conditions will become progressively cloudy to overcast. During the course of the day, rain will set in over numerous provinces, including the North West, the Free State, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and to a lesser extent, KZN. Heavy rainfall is likely to occur in many parts of the above-mentioned provinces, elevating the risk of flooding as well as river flooding. The public is urged to monitor and take heed of regular weather updates and warnings issued by SAWS.”
Disaster management practitioners are also advised to maintain a high level of vigilance during this period, should river flooding continue to pose a safety and health risk to the public at large. “Motorists and pedestrians are urged not to try to cross rivers or streams that are already flooded, under any circumstances. Currently, numeric weather prediction models suggest that the rainfall in association with this system will start clearing from the west, during the course of Tuesday December 12, although areas of heavier rainfall may still linger over KZN, eSwatini and the Lowveld regions of Mpumalanga and Limpopo.”
Also read: The preliminary evaluation of storm damage in the Lowveld is complete
The weather service said it would continue to monitor this weather system and issue subsequent updates and impact-based warnings over the next few days.
Updated information in this regard will regularly be available on www.weathersa.co.za as well as on X at @SAWeatherService and Facebook @SouthAfricanWeatherservice
