A round-up of the extreme weather conditions in SA
Winter has hit with a vengeance in the past few days with many parts of the country experiencing extreme and disruptive weather conditions.
Unless you’ve been stuck in a bunker with no access to the outside world for the past few days, you would’ve noticed the weather tide changing drastically around parts of South Africa. Gale force winds, extreme temperatures and snow swept through several parts of the country, leading to the interruption of electricity supply, damage to property, and, in some cases, loss of life.
The South African Weather Service has issued warnings of intense weather conditions including heavy rainfall, snow, tornados and extreme cold this week. Here is a round-up of some of the extreme weather conditions across the country:
KZN gets record breaking rain
The South African Weather Service confirmed that KZN has experienced record rainfall over the last 24 hours. The estimated rainfall is 203mm in Margate and 99mm in Durban South. Residents and motorists were urged to be careful as the storm has already destroyed buildings and claimed the life of a woman who was swept off a low-lying bridge in Silverglen in Chatsworth.
Magaliesberg hit by a tornado
In Koesterfontein in the Magaliesburg area, Mario Ferrerira posted a video on Youtube of a tornado on Monday, 25 July around 3.30pm. Residents in the area reported that the tornado caused severe damage.
Snowy Eastern Cape
It’s not uncommon for the Eastern Cape to be snowy white around this time of the year, but the SA Weather Services has warned that these snowy conditions could be disruptive in a few areas. Snow has fallen on the south-western and western high grounds of KwaZulu-Natal, the northern high grounds of the Eastern Cape and the eastern and southern parts of the Free State.
Extreme windy conditions
Gale force easterly to north-easterly winds (65 – 75km/h) hit Cape St. Francis and Port Edward on Monday evening and a south-easterly hit Table Bay and Stilbaai. The weather services also warned of high seas with wave heights measuring from 6m to 9m between Cape Agulhas and Durban. Cape Town has already witnessed a number of road accidents and two hikers were stranded on Table Mountain, but were soon rescued.
Here’s a video of Cape Town winter wind in 2015:
For more information on weather conditions in SA, visit SA Weather Services.
