Cameroon timber
South Africans in several provinces are bracing for snow, disruptive heavy rain and damaging winds as a powerful cold front tracks across the country between Wednesday, 1 and Thursday, 2 July. The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has warned that conditions will turn severely cold this week, with snowfall expected over the mountainous areas of the Cape provinces. Where will conditions be worst? The extreme south of the country faces the most severe conditions, with an 80% chance of widespread rain forecast for Thursday. A 60% probability of scattered showers and rain extends across the southern and central interior. In comparison, isolated showers of around 30% are expected over the western interior and parts of the Cape provinces. Furthermore, SAWS has flagged the possibility of disruptive heavy rainfall and damaging winds, particularly along the southern coastal belt, where wind speeds are expected to strengthen significantly as the front makes landfall.
Snow on the cards for mountain regions
Temperatures across much of the country will drop sharply, with very cold conditions forecast for the eastern interior and mountainous areas stretching through the Cape provinces. In addition, snowfall is expected over elevated terrain, including the Drakensberg foothills and the Cape mountain ranges, which could lead to road closures and disruptions to mountain passes. Additionally, Sutherland and the surrounding Karoo areas are already listed as very cold, with snowfall symbols appearing on the SAWS map for parts of the Eastern and Western Cape interior. What about Gauteng and the north? The Gauteng metros, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Ekurhuleni are expected to experience cool to cold conditions with partly cloudy skies.
Furthermore, temperatures in the region are forecast to be around 20°C, with no significant rainfall expected on Thursday. However, cold conditions will persist throughout the week. The Limpopo north remains largely fine and warm, with temperatures near Polokwane and Phalaborwa sitting comfortably above 15°C.