Weather Report: a tale of two countries today

Sunday, 20 September’s Weather Report shows a real contrast across the country.

The west stays calm and warm, while the eastern and central regions face a wet, unsettled day.

SAWS has issued several warnings today, including severe thunderstorms across parts of KwaZulu-Natal, multiple disruptive rain alerts in the eastern and central regions, and extreme veld fire conditions in the drier western parts.

Gauteng stays partly cloudy and cool to warm.

The UVB sunburn index is “moderate” today.

REMEMBER | Weather: Lightning, hail and heavy rain set to batter KZN

WHERE THE WARNINGS HIT HARDEST TODAY

Mpumalanga sees cloudy conditions with isolated showers and rain in the east.

Otherwise, it stays partly cloudy and cool to warm. Morning fog patches are expected in the extreme south-east.

Limpopo stays cloudy with isolated showers and rain in the east.

Otherwise, it turns partly cloudy and cool to warm.

North West sees partly cloudy and cool to warm conditions, with isolated showers and thundershowers over the western parts.

The Free State sees a cloudy day, with morning fog patches and a chance of drizzle in the extreme east at first.

Otherwise, it turns partly cloudy and cool to warm, with isolated to scattered showers and thundershowers over the western and central parts.

The Northern Cape stays partly cloudy, windy and cool to warm, with scattered showers and thundershowers in the south. Elsewhere, showers stay isolated, except along the coast and adjacent interior.

WHY KWAZULU-NATAL AND THE EAST CARRY THE HEAVIEST RISK TODAY

The Western Cape stays fine and warm to hot, with Cape Town enjoying clear skies and a high near 30°C.

The western half of the Eastern Cape stays partly cloudy and cool to warm, becoming cloudy over the interior with isolated showers and thundershowers, scattered in the north.

The eastern half stays partly cloudy and cool, but warm in places in the south-west, becoming cloudy with isolated showers and thunderstorms, scattered in the north.

KwaZulu-Natal sees cloudy and cool to warm conditions, with scattered showers and thundershowers, isolated in the north-east. 

A Yellow Level 2 warning for severe thunderstorms covers Estcourt, Ekuvukeni, Ladysmith, Underberg, King Shaka Airport, Kokstad and more than 30 other areas, from 13:00 until 23:59 today.

SAWS also warned of damaging winds, hail and excessive lightning, capable of causing localised flooding and damage to infrastructure and settlements, across most of the province, except the extreme northern parts and the north-eastern coast and adjacent interior.

According to SAWS, the eastern and central regions face a genuinely unsettled day, with four separate minor disruptive rain warnings active across Durban, Bloemfontein, Polokwane and Mbombela.

Out west, two extreme veld fire conditions warnings remain in force, a stark reminder to stay cautious in the drier parts of the country even while the weather there looks calm.

It’s a genuine tale of two countries today, sunny and mild in the west, wet and stormy in the east.

Worth keeping a close eye on local updates if you’re anywhere near KwaZulu-Natal or the eastern interior.

Are you in one of today’s warning areas, and how are you preparing?