WATCH: Winter chill brings howling winds and heavy rain

AS parts of KZN and the country are blanketed under the first winter snowfall, Zululanders woke up this (Thursday) morning to heavy rain and galeforce winds in places.

In Richards Bay, the wind began howling early this morning, long before the first rain fell. By 8am, a large tree had toppled over in Pony Fish road in Meerensee.

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Travelling on the John Ross between Richards Bay and Empangeni was hair-raising for motorists, especially in the vicinity of the eSikhaleni intersection and bridge, owing to large amounts of standing water.

Earlier in the week, campers at Cape Vidal awoke to their campsite flooded.

While the South African Weather Service (SAWS) had issued a weather warning of disruptive heavy rains for eThekwini and KZN’s coastal regions for Wednesday, the heavy weather only hit over the night.

However, the cold weather spell forecast by the weather service is set to last well into the coming weekend, with temperatures set to barely touch 20 degrees across the Zululand region.

These cold temperatures follow in the wake of a cold front that moved over the eastern parts of the country on Sunday evening, sustained by the development of a cut-off low pressure system over the southeastern parts of SA.

It is this cut-off low system that is responsible for much of the adverse weather being experienced this week, including the snowfall over Lesotho and the Drakensberg.

uMkhanyakude, eastern Zululand and eastern King Cetshwayo districts were set to experience heavy rain with the potential of localised flooding.
People are reminded not to cross swollen rivers and to drive with caution so as not to aquaplane.

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