Weather

Weather alert: Temperatures to hit the 30s tomorrow

Despite more than a month still to go before the spring equinox in the southern hemisphere (22 September), very hot weather has been forecasted in some regions in South Africa tomorrow.

KwaZulu-Natal’s Ulundi will be the hottest with a maximum temperature of 36°C while Bizana in the Eastern Cape may hit 33°C. Mpumalanga’s Skukuza is expected to reach 32°C.

This while warnings have been issued for damaging winds and waves along the coast and a cold front is expected in the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal later in the week.

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Weather warnings, Wednesday 21 August

In its regional forecast, the SA Weather Service issued a yellow level 1 warning for interior winds resulting in localised damage to settlements, temporary structures and difficult driving conditions over the Chris Hani District of the Eastern Cape.

A yellow level 1 warning was issued for coastal winds leading to difficulty in navigation at sea between Saldanha Bay and Cape Point.

A yellow level 2 warning was issued for damaging winds resulting in localised damage to settlements, temporary structures and difficult driving conditions in places along the Eastern Cape coast between Oyster Bay and Port Alfred.

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The weather service also issued a yellow level 2 warning for damaging wind and waves resulting in localised disruption to small harbours/ports and difficulty in navigation for small vessels between East London and Port Edward from the afternoon.

A yellow level 3 warning was issued for damaging wind and waves resulting in the disruption of small harbours and beachfront activities between Cape Point and Plettenberg Bay.

A yellow level 4 warning was issued for damaging wind and waves resulting in disruption to small harbours/ports and risk to medium vessels of dragging anchor/breaking mooring lines between Plettenberg Bay and East London.

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Extremely high fire danger conditions are expected over the eastern parts of the Northern Cape, the western parts of the Free State, in places over the northern interior of the Eastern Cape and the northern interior of KwaZulu-Natal.

Advisories

A cold front is expected to result in very cold and windy conditions in places over the southern parts of the Namakwa District of the Northern Cape and the Witzenberg Municipality of the Western Cape spreading to the interior of the Eastern Cape and the south-western interior of KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday (22 August 2024).

Provincial weather forecast, Wednesday 21 August

Gauteng:

Fine and warm.

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The expected UVB sunburn index: Very high.

Mpumalanga:

Fine and warm but hot in the Lowveld.

Limpopo:

Fine and warm but hot in the Limpopo Valley and the extreme southern parts of the Lowveld.

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North West Province:

Fine and warm. It will be windy in the extreme west.

Free State:

Fine and warm.

It will be windy in the west and the extreme east.

Northern Cape:

Fine, windy and cool to warm, but cloudy and cold in the west and south with light morning rain in the south-west. It will be very cold over the southern high ground.

The wind along the coast will be light and variable in the morning, otherwise moderate to fresh southerly to south-easterly reaching strong from late afternoon.

Western Cape:

Fine over the north-eastern parts at first, otherwise cloudy, windy and cold with isolated showers and rain, but scattered over the south-western parts where it will becoming partly cloudy from the afternoon.

The wind along the coast will be fresh to strong westerly to northwesterly, becoming southerly to south-westerly over the western parts during the morning, spreading eastwards and reaching near-gale force along the south coast in the afternoon.

The expected UVB sunburn index: Low.

Eastern Cape (western half):

Morning fog patches in the south, otherwise partly cloudy and cool to warm but cloudy in the south with isolated showers and rain along the coast and adjacent interior from the afternoon. It will be cold in the extreme south-west.

The wind along the coast will be fresh to strong south-westerly, reaching gale force from late morning, moderating in the evening.

Eastern Cape (eastern half):

Cloudy in the south-west, otherwise fine and warm to hot, becoming cloudy along the coast and adjacent interior with isolated showers and rain in the afternoon.

The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh south-westerly, becoming strong to gale force in the south in the afternoon, spreading northwards in the evening.

KwaZulu-Natal:

Fine and warm to hot, becoming partly cloudy to cloudy in the southern and eastern parts from late afternoon into the evening.

The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh northerly to north-easterly in the north, otherwise light and variable. From the afternoon, it will become moderate to fresh southerly to south-westerly in the south, spreading northwards and reaching strong to near-gale force in places in the evening.

The expected UVB sunburn index: Extreme.

NOW READ: Damaging winds and extreme fire danger across multiple provinces

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By Nicholas Zaal