Rest of winter likely to be mild

Although temperatures in different parts of the country are expected to drop again this week, early indications suggest above normal temperatures for the remainder of this winter, according to the South African Weather Service.

Forecaster Dipuo Tawana yesterday said mild conditions were expected between July and August. “There will still be those days when we experience extreme conditions, but it is not going to be the case for the remainder of winter,” she said.

For the rest of this week in Gauteng, Tawana said maximums in the southern parts were expected to drop below 20ºC.

Vereeniging was likely to drop to 18ºC tomorrow and by another degree on Friday, while Johannesburg would peak at highs of 19ºC on both days.

The minimum temperatures were expected to range between 0ºC and 5ºC tomorrow and on Friday. Temperatures in the northern parts of the province, including Pretoria, were expected to be cool.

In the drought-hit Western Cape, indications were still that above average rainfall was expected. Looking to spring, early indications were that the likelihood of the El Nino phenomenon returning was decreasing. – stevent@citizen.co.za