SAWS issues weather warnings for South Africa as cut-off low develops

A cut-off low pressure system is set to bring wild weather to parts of the country this week, the South African Weather Service (SAWS) announced on Tuesday.

The system will be responsible for the “first significant summer rainfall” across the majority of the country. That’s good news, but SAWS has also noted that this could spell disaster for those in an already-saturated KwaZulu-Natal.

Media release: First significant summer rainfall could lead to potential flooding in places. Please find attached. pic.twitter.com/e7E5xNg9PK

— SA Weather Service (@SAWeatherServic) November 12, 2019

Rainfall is expected from today through to Friday for some areas of South Africa, but select areas along the province’s coastline could experience in excess of 150 millimetres of rain for Thursday and Friday.

A cut-off low pressure system will sweep across South Africa this week

“Over the central and eastern parts of KwaZulu-Natal, this heavy rain is expected to lead to flooding of roads and settlements both formal and informal,” it cautioned.

“There is an extreme danger to life due to fast flowing rivers. There is also a possibility of mudslides/landslides and soil erosion.”

SAWS also warned of localised flooding on Tuesday for parts of Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Western Cape and Eastern Cape’s southern coastline.

The cut-off low, positioned east of Cape Town as of Tuesday afternoon, is expected to track east cross the country this week.

Follow the South African Weather Service

Weather is fickle and subject to change, so we’d recommend following SAWS on its official Twitter account, especially for updates on the cut-off low.

And be sure to bookmark its warnings portal too, where it regularly updates the advisories and more serious information on the daily.

Feature image: Andy Walker/Memeburn