SAWS warns of severe thunderstorms across several provinces

Get daily updates on temperatures, winds and UVB levels, and see what the SA Weather Service predicts for the country.

Here’s the weather outlook for South Africa’s nine provinces.

SAWS has issued Level 5, 2, and 1 alerts for severe thunderstorms, warning of intense lightning, small hail, damaging winds, flooding on low-lying roads, and potential infrastructure damage in affected areas.

SEVERE WEATHER ALERTS

IMPACT-BASED WARNINGS

A. Orange Level 5 Warning for Severe Thunderstorms leading to flooding of roads, low-lying areas, bridges and roads, as well as damage to settlements or structures over populated areas (urban or rural villages) are expected over the interior of Northern Cape, western parts of the Free State and North-West.

B. Yellow Level 2 Warning for Severe Thunderstorms resulting in localised flooding of susceptible roads, settlements and low-lying bridges/areas are expected over the eastern and northern parts ofthe Northern Cape, the central and western parts of the Free State, the western parts of the North-West, as well as the central and eastern parts of the Eastern Cape.

C. Yellow level 1 Warning for Severe Thunderstorms resulting in heavy downpours, damaging winds, excessive lightning and hail, leading to localised flooding of susceptible roads, is expected in the extreme south of KwaZulu-Natal.

D. Yellow level 2 Warning for Damaging Waves leading to difficulty in navigation at sea and localised disruption to beachfront activities, is expected between Saldanha Bay and Cape Agulhas from Friday evening, spreading to Plettenberg Bay on Saturday.

FIRE DANGER WARNINGS

Extremely high fire danger conditions are expected over the southern Namakwa District of the Northern Cape, the Central and Little Karoo and the Swellendam municipality of the Western Cape.

ADVISORIES

Extremely uncomfortable conditions are expected over the eastern parts of KwaZulu-Natal.

Weather conditions and UVB forecast in South Africa’s provinces

Gauteng

Gauteng can expect cloudy in the south in the morning, becoming partly cloudy and warm with isolated showers and thundershowers.

The expected UVB Sunburn Index is Moderate

Mpumalanga

Mpumalanga, the Place of the Rising Sun, can expect cloudy with morning fog patches along the escarpment, otherwise partly cloudy and warm but hot in places in the Lowveld, with isolated showers and thundershowers.

Limpopo

In Limpopo, cloudy with morning fog patches along the escarpment, otherwise partly cloudy and warm but hot in the Limpopo Valley, with isolated showers and thundershowers.

North West

North West, known as Bokone Bophirima in Setswana, can expect partly cloudy, windy and warm with scattered to widespread showers and thundershowers, but isolated over the eastern parts.

Free State

In Free State, partly cloudy, windy and cool to warm, with scattered to widespread showers and thundershowers, but isolated over the eastern parts.

Northern Cape

The day will start cloudy, with isolated morning showers and rain in the north-east; otherwise, partly cloudy, windy, and cool to warm, with widespread showers and thundershowers, but isolated to scattered in the east and central. It will become cloudy along the coast and in the adjacent interior in the evening, with a chance of light rain. The wind along the coast will be light to moderate westerly to northwesterly.

Western Cape

Cloudy in the east at first with isolated morning showers and thundershowers in the north-east, otherwise partly cloudy, windy and warm to hot. It will be cloudy and cool in the west with isolated to scattered showers and rain from the afternoon spreading along the south coast and adjacent interior in the evening. The wind along the coast will be light to moderate westerly to north-westerly but fresh to strong along the south-west coast becoming light south-westerly from the afternoon but fresh to strong in places along the south coast.

The expected UVB sunburn index is Very High

Eastern Cape

The Western half: Partly cloudy and warm with widespread showers and thundershowers but scattered in the west. The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh south-westerly.

The Eastern half: The day will start partly cloudy and warm with widespread showers and thundershowers.The wind along the coast will be light to moderate south-westerly becoming north-easterly in the evening.

KwaZulu-Natal

Partly cloudy and warm to hot with isolated showers and thundershowers in the south but scattered in the extreme south. The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh north-easterly, becoming south-westerly in the south from the afternoon.

The expected UVB Sunburn Index is Very High

Forecast data provided by the South African Weather Service.