Weather update: Thunderstorms and hail in six provinces on Saturday

The SA Weather Service has issued a yellow level 2 warning of severe thunderstorms with strong damaging winds, hail and heavy downpours expected over the eastern parts of the North West Province and Free State, extreme southern parts of Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and western KwaZulu-Natal.

Conversely, a heat wave with persistently high temperatures is expected in places over Alfred Nzo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape until Tuesday.

Saturday’s weather forecast

Gauteng:

Partly cloudy and warm with scattered showers and thundershowers.

The expected UVB sunburn index: High

Mpumalanga:

Partly cloudy and warm with scattered afternoon thundershowers but isolated in the Lowveld where it will be hot to very hot.

Limpopo:

Very hot in the Lowveld and Western Bushveld, otherwise partly cloudy and hot with isolated afternoon thundershowers over the central and southern parts but scattered in the extreme south.

North West Province:

Partly cloudy and warm to hot, with isolated showers and thundershowers.

Free State:

Partly cloudy and warm to hot, with isolated showers and thundershowers, except in the west.

Northern Cape:

Partly cloudy and warm to hot, becoming fine. The wind along the coast will be light and variable.

Western Cape:

Cloudy with light rain over the extreme southwestern parts in the morning, otherwise fine and warm, but partly cloudy over the western parts in the morning and along the south coast from the evening.

It will be cool along the coast, but hot over the Karoo. The wind along the coast will be light to moderate west to north-westerly, but fresh to strong along the south-west coast, while south to south-westerly along the south coast during the afternoon when it will be fresh to strong.

The expected UVB sunburn index: Extreme

Western half of the Eastern Cape:

Partly cloudy and hot, but warm to cool in places along the coast. The wind along the coast will be moderate westerly, becoming light north- westerly in the afternoon.

Eastern half of the Eastern Cape:

Partly cloudy and warm, becoming cloudy in the east with isolated showers and rain. The wind along the coast will be light to moderate south-westerly.

KwaZulu-Natal:

Partly cloudy and warm to hot with isolated showers and thundershowers but scattered in the west. The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh north-easterly.

The expected UVB sunburn index: High