SAWS: thunderstorm watch for Johannesburg, Pretoria and surrounds today

We’re used to writing about weather brewing over Cape Town, but now that the cold front season has largely abated, the summer rainfall regions are beginning to experience their first bout of thunderstorms.

The South African Weather Service (SAWS) on Thursday issued watches for severe weather across the northern provinces and cities of South Africa, including Pretoria and Johannesburg.

Mpumalanga is under a watch — from 12pm to 7pm — for “severe thunderstorms […] in the Nkangala District and the western parts of Gert Sibande District of Mpumalanga from the early afternoon,” SAWS tweeted.

Watch:10/10/2019 12h00 TO:10/10/2019 19h00 Severe Thunderstorms- are expected in the Nkangala District and the western parts of Gert Sibande District of Mpumalanga from the early afternoon today (Thursday). pic.twitter.com/xNhtfJ19C0

— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) October 10, 2019

Limpopo’s watch begins at 1pm and ends at 10pm, with areas affected including the Waterberg and Sekhukhune districts.

Watch:10/10/2019 13h00 TO:10/10/2019 22h00 Severe Thunderstorms- are expected in the Waterberg and Sekhukhune Districts of Limpopo from the afternoon today (Thursday). pic.twitter.com/jg80yRCv1M

— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) October 10, 2019

Finally, Gauteng residents could experience “heavy downpours and strong winds”.

The watch — in effect from 1pm to 6pm — encompasses the “City of Tshwane, City of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Lesedi Municipalities of Gauteng”.

Watch:10/10/2019 13h00 TO:10/10/2019 18h00 Severe Thunderstorms- with possible heavy downpours and strong winds are possible in places over the City of Tshwane, City of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Lesedi Municipalities of Gauteng from the afternoon today (Thursday). pic.twitter.com/1VUEdMsnzJ

— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) October 10, 2019

We’d suggest following SAWS on Twitter or its warnings portal for rolling updates of the severe weather across South Africa today and the remaining summer months.

Feature image: Lightning from a thunderstorm over Johannesburg in 2016, by Derek Keats via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)