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Cooler weather for Gauteng with possibility of rain
Temperatures in Johannesburg and Pretoria will be slightly cooler this week.
Temperatures in Johannesburg and Pretoria are expected to be cooler this week. Image: iStock
After a scorching weekend, Gauteng residents can expect some cooler weather across the province from Monday.
Last week, Johannesburg experienced its first post-winter temperature of 30°C.
Pretoria also had very hot temperatures, with the mercury hitting the 31°C mark.
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However, Gauteng Weather said cooler temperatures are expected for this week.
The regional service forecast temperatures in Johannesburg to start at a low of 7°C, reaching a high of 28°C.
Pretoria will also be much cooler with a minimum of 9°C and a maximum of 30°C
Gauteng Weather has forecast a 10% chance of rain in Johannesburg and Pretoria on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Dam Levels
Meanwhile, encumbent rains will be a welcome relief for the province’s dams.
With demand for water expected to increase as South Africa enters a new season of Spring, the Department of Water and Sanitation has called on water consumers to use water sparingly.
The department’s weekly state of water reservoirs demonstrated a minor decline.
Last week, the overall national storage capacity of the country’s reservoirs was at 91.2%, a slight reduction from the previous week’s 91.8%, and a significant improvement from last year’s 80.6%.
The country’s largest water supply system, the Integrated Vaal River System, consisting of 14 dams across four provinces, dipped marginally from 97.4% the previous week to 96.7% last week.
Some of the water supply systems that have declined are: Bloemfontein from 97.1 to 96.9%, Amathole from 82.5% to 81.9%, Butterworth from 99.1% to 98.5%,
Both Crocodile East and West experienced a reduction by the tiniest margins from 98.9% to 97.7% and 96.8% to 96.1% respectively.
Load Shedding
Meanwhile, with Spring season officially kicking in on 17 September, the warmer temperatures are likely to put pressure on the electricity grid as people try to keep cool as days get warmer.
Last week, the dark lords at Megawatt Park slapped South Africans with stage four load shedding.
However, the rolling blackouts was deescalated to stage 3 from 5 o’clock on Monday morning, while stage 3 will be implemented from Tuesday until Friday.
ALSO READ: Load shedding: Energy expert warns of rolling blackouts for the remainder of 2022
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