Rare South African snowstorm shuts down roads

An unusual event took place in South Africa over the weekend as blizzard conditions brought snow, black ice and poor visibility to the region. 

According to Bloomberg, an unusual snow and ice storm forced the closing of South Africa’s N3 highway at Van Reenen’s Pass, which connects Gauteng to KwaZulu-Natal, the nation’s two most populous provinces on Saturday, Sept. 21. 

“Road users are advised to avoid the affected areas, as more inclement weather is expected,” Vusi Mona, general manager of South Africa’s National Road Agency, said in a statement on Saturday.

Just days before the spring equinox in the Southern Hemisphere, a low-pressure system brought unseasonably cold temperatures and snow to parts of the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Free State.

“Disruptive snowfall of 15 to 30 cm can be expected over the northeastern high-lying areas of the Eastern Cape, the western and southern areas of KwaZulu-Natal, the eastern Free State, and the southern Highveld and escarpment of Mpumalanga, mainly on Friday, 20 September, continuing into Saturday morning, 21 September,” the South African Weather Service said before the event. 

While snow occasionally occurs in higher elevations of the region, such as the Drakensberg and Cederberg mountains, it rarely reaches the lower regions of the country.

While there’s no direct link to this event being part of climate change in the region, according to South Africa’s National Adaptation Plan, there is evidence that extreme weather events are increasing, with heat waves more likely, dry spell durations lengthening slightly, and rainfall intensity increasing.