Johannesburg - Winter will tighten its grip on parts of South Africa this weekend into next week with Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal likely to be cold and wet.
A cold front is expected to hit Gauteng on Monday, when maximum temperatures are expected to peak at 10-15ºC in Joburg, and the minimum will be 4- 6ºC.
SA Weather Service forecaster Mbavhi Maliage said the cold front would be coupled with a reasonable amount of rainfall.
“The cold front is caused by a cut-off low pressure system and will see a drop in temperatures and rainfall for most of next week in the province,” she said.
The maximum temperature on Monday in Joburg is expected to be about 15ºC and on Tuesday could peak at about 12ºC. Wednesday could be the coldest day with a maximum of about 10ºC. Thursday is forecast at 11ºC.
There’s a 30 percent chance of rain in Joburg on Monday.
This will increase to a 60 percent chance of showers and thundershowers on Tuesday.
The South African Weather Service has also issued a warning of icy cold conditions for KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape as well as eastern and north-eastern Lesotho.
An intense cut-off low-weather system will see heavy snowfalls on the Drakensberg Mountains.
Temperatures are expected to plummet in KZN on Sunday - with maximum temperatures as low as 12ºC in parts of Durban - while heavy rains have been forecast for the coastal belt.
Extreme sea swells are expected over the weekend. Waves are expected to reach highs of 3.7m by Monday.
This is as a result of the cold front which is expected to batter KZN from Saturday, which according to the weather service would bring “widespread, persistent snowfalls”.
By Sunday, snowdrifts on the mountains of KZN will become “progressively deeper and more disruptive as the day progresses into the evening hours”.
The weather service warned that the disruptive snowfalls may result in closure of the passes between the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal from Sunday evening to Monday.
“In southern Africa, the late winter season is well-known for delivering winter weather systems, often of an extreme nature,” the weather service said on Friday morning.
“Such winter weather systems, often characterised by snow, bitter cold and strong winds, have the distinct potential to be hazardous to the public, with possibly fatal consequences for human life as well as livestock, when facing the elements for extended periods without adequate shelter.
“The winter weather developing over the next few days is likely to be no exception.”
The weather service said a strong onshore flow along the KZN coast and adjacent interior were likely to support heavier falls, with localised flooding possible, especially over the southern and central parts.
The cold conditions are expected to dissipate in KwaZulu-Natal from Tuesday, with sunny and warm weather predicted from Wednesday.
Temperarures in Cape Town are not expected to rise above 15ºC this weekend with clear skies and sunshine forecast for Sunday and Monday.
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