South Africans can expect mixed weather conditions this weekend, with disruptive rain forecast for parts of the northeast while very hot and dry conditions persist in the western regions of the country.
The South African Weather Service has issued a Yellow Level 4 warning for disruptive rainfall over the Lowveld and escarpment areas of Limpopo and the north-eastern parts of Mpumalanga on Saturday. Heavy downpours could lead to localised flooding of susceptible roads, settlements and low-lying bridges.
Rainfall chances on Saturday will be highest over the northeastern parts of the country, where widespread showers and thundershowers are expected.
Rain chances of around 80% are forecast over eastern Limpopo and the northeastern parts of Mpumalanga, while surrounding areas including Gauteng and parts of North West could see scattered storms with a 60% chance of rain during the afternoon.
Central regions such as the Free State and interior Northern Cape have about a 30% chance of isolated thundershowers.
The western parts of the country will remain largely dry. The Western Cape will be fine in the far west with very hot temperatures expected, while the rest of the province will be partly cloudy and warm to hot with a slight chance of light rain along the south coast later in the day. Isolated afternoon thundershowers are possible over the Central Karoo.
Extremely high fire danger conditions are also expected over parts of the Kamiesberg Municipality in the Northern Cape, as well as in places over the West Coast District and the Drakenstein Municipality in the Western Cape due to the hot, dry and windy conditions.
A heatwave is expected to continue across large parts of the Eastern Cape, excluding the Joe Gqabi and Amathole districts, with persistently high temperatures forecast to last until Monday.
Looking ahead to Sunday, cloudy conditions with scattered showers and thundershowers are expected to persist across much of the northern and central interior, with rain chances around 60% over parts of Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Gauteng.
Isolated storms with about a 30% chance of rain are expected over central areas including the Free State and Northern Cape interior.
Meanwhile, the Western Cape will remain mostly sunny and very hot in places, particularly in the western parts of the province, while warm to hot conditions continue across the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal with only isolated showers expected in some areas.
Motorists and residents in flood-prone areas in the northeast are advised to remain cautious as heavy downpours could lead to rapidly rising water levels, while residents in the west should take precautions due to the extreme heat and high fire danger conditions.
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Wendy Dondolo
iol.co.za
