Wintery blast hits region with full force

Storm surf hit the shivering Eastern Cape coast, which was buffeted by icy westerly winds.

Snow inland also saw transport officials closing passes.

“It is 4°C,” said Karen Kluckow, receptionist at Hogsback’s The Edge mountain retreat at 11am on Sunday.

Snow fell on Hogsback village but melted in rain overnight on Saturday.

Kluckow said people had flocked to the town to see the snow, which still covered the mountain tops.

In East London, there was a frenzy at Nahoon Corner parking lot as surfers raced to enjoy long sets of 1.5m swell which ran past an out-of-control Nahoon Reef and lined up before unloading on a rare sand bank in the corner.

Snow and ice covered the closed Lootsberg Pass on the N9 between Middelburg and Graaff-Reinet and the Wapadsberg Pass on the R61 between Cradock and Graaff Reinet.

All relevant emergency services personnel were on high alert, the department said, while urging motorists to cooperate and not try their luck by ignoring the closed signage and bollards.

Landscaper Denise Minnaar said the water in their taps on their farm above Graaff-Reinet had frozen.

“It is freezing cold. The oak trees have burst into leaf from the snow,” she said.

Dave Walker, owner of Walkerbouts Inn at Rhodes said: “There is a sprinkling of snow on the surrounding southern Drakensberg mountains.

“Temperatures were sub-zero last night and it is 13°C now [10.30am] but there is no wind. The snow melt will be good for fly fishing when it warms up later this week.”

Tiffindell Ski & Alpine Resort did not answer their phones on Sunday but webcam recorders showed images of snow caking the resort gardens and grounds and whiting out the surrounding hills.

Grahamstown resident Ben Carver said: “It is flippin’ cold, definitely under 10°C.” The wind is whistling through the holes in the windows.”

SnowReport.co.za reported 10cm of snow across the escarpment, from west to east, with depths of 25cm to 50cm in some spots, one of them in the centre of the triangle between Cradock, Graaff-Reinet and Somerset East.

Last week, the SA Weather Service said extreme, wintery weather with snowfall and bitterly cold conditions would last until Monday, when a maximum of 20°C was expected. PE weather spokesperson Garth Sampson said snow had fallen in Migsund, Krakeel, Louterwater and the Patensie and Cockscomb mountains.

Pictures posted online showed thick snow in the Baviaans mountain range. — Additional reporting by Tyler Ridden and TimesLive