Brace for cold snap, snow as winter arrives

KWAZULU-NATAL is expecting a cold snap from tonight as a cold front makes its way through South Africa.

SA Weather Services (Saws) forecaster Wisani Maluleke said the cold front would start affecting the province tonight. Tomorrow they were expecting low temperatures.

“In the coastal areas, the temperatures we’re expecting should be around 20-21°C and then going into the Midlands, the Pietermaritzburg side, the temperatures will be roughly around 14 to 16°C, and those will be your maximum temperatures. For the Drakensberg and high lying areas we expect maximum temperatures to be 10°C or lower.”

Maluleke said the low temperatures would continue into Wednesday and recovery would start from Thursday.

He added that the Lesotho mountains would get snowfall and if snow fell on the Drakensberg, it would be light.

According to a statement issued by the Saws on Friday, from tomorrow in southern Kwazulu-natal, the Free State, the interior and Cape provinces, daytime temperatures are expected to drop. Snowfall is likely to spread to the KZN Drakensberg mountains, Lesotho and Qwaqwa.

“While many will be excited to see snow, the Saws strongly encourages the public to refrain from travelling to snow sites amid the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown regulations,” the statement said.

Snow Report SA said although data showed significant volatility in recent days, the freezing remained low, and if it continued and enough moisture arrived there was a good chance of low-level snow. They saw the possibility of snow in Kwazulu-natal, the Cape, the Free State and Lesotho.