Weather update: High temperatures and thunderstorms expected on Wednesday

South Africans can expect warm to hot weather, with severe thunderstorms in three provinces on Wednesday.

The SA Weather Service issued a yellow level 2 warning for severe thunderstorms with possible strong winds, large amounts of small hail and heavy downpours leading to localised and short-term disruption to municipal and other essential services, as well as possible blown trees over the north-eastern parts of the Free State, Gauteng as well as the Highveld of the Mpumalanga province.

🌦️⛈️Weather outlook for Wednesday:
Partly cloudy and warm in the east, with scattered to isolated thunderstorms. Otherwise, fine & hot.

⚠️Warning: Severe thunderstorms- heavy rain, flooding, strong winds and hail. #saws#southafricanweather#weatherupdate#weatheroutlook pic.twitter.com/zwJR7Faiic

— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) December 19, 2023

Extremely high fire danger conditions are also expected in the Inxuba Yethemba, Raymond Mhlaba and northern Dr Beyers Naude Local Municipalities of the Eastern Cape, as well as western parts of Free State, western and southern parts of North-West, extreme north-eastern parts of Western Cape, and over Northern Cape except its western parts.

A Heat Wave with persistently high temperatures is expected over the western parts of North West, the western and central parts of the Free State, and the eastern parts of the Northern Cape until Saturday.

Wednesday’s weather forecast

Gauteng:

Partly cloudy and warm with isolated showers and thundershowers.

The expected UVB sunburn index: High 2.

Mpumalanga:

Cloudy in the morning with drizzle over the escarpment otherwise partly cloudy and warm but hot in the Lowveld with isolated afternoon showers and thundershowers except in the Lowveld, where it will be hot.

Limpopo:

Cloudy in the morning with drizzle over the escarpment otherwise partly cloudy and warm with isolated showers and thundershowers over the south western parts

North West Province:

Cloudy in the east at first, otherwise fine and hot to very hot, becoming partly cloudy, with isolated afternoon showers and thundershowers.

Free State:

Cloudy in the east at first, where it will become partly cloudy with isolated showers and thundershower, otherwise fine and hot to very hot, but extremely hot in the west.

Northern Cape:

Partly cloudy and cool to warm along the coast and adjacent interior, otherwise fine and hot to very hot but extremely hot in the north. It will be windy in the south.

The wind along the coast will be fresh southerly to south- easterly, but strong at times in the afternoon.

WESTERN CAPE:

Cloudy to partly cloudy and cool along the south coast, otherwise fine and warm to hot, but very hot in places over the eastern interior.

The wind along the coast will be moderate easterly along the south coast at first, otherwise moderate to fresh southerly to south-westerly.

The expected UVB sunburn index: Extreme 8.

Western half of the Eastern Cape:

Fine and warm to hot. It will become cloudy along the coast with evening rain in places and partly cloudy in the southern interior.

The wind along the coast will be light to moderate south-westerly.

Eastern half of the Eastern Cape:

Fine becoming cloudy in the evening with light rain in places south of the escarpment. The wind along the coast will be moderate north-easterly.

KwaZulu-Natal:

Morning fog over interior, otherwise partly cloudy and warm but hot in places in the north. Isolated showers and thundershowers are expected.

The wind along the coast will be moderate south-westerly at first, otherwise moderate to fresh north-easterly.

The expected UVB sunburn index: Extreme