Hot and humid weather will lead to extremely uncomfortable conditions in the Lowveld of Limpopo and Mpumalanga today with no sign of rain any time soon, warns the South African Weather Service.

A heatwave has seen temperatures in the North-West, northern Free-State, Gauteng, the eastern highveld of Mpumalanga and parts of Limpopo in the mid to high 30’s since Monday with no sign of relief any time soon.

The weather service says a heatwave is expected to hit Gauteng, the Mpumalanga highveld and south-western bushveld of Limpopo today and tomorrow.

What is the cause of the heatwave?

In a media release, the South African Weather Service says a spell of dry, cloud-free weather over the past few days has allowed maximum levels of sunshine to arrive over the interior of the country, with temperatures becoming incrementally higher every day.

In addition, a very large upper-air high pressure system has dominated the weather pattern over the southern African subcontinent in the past week and has blocked the arrival of tropically sourced moisture which has delated the onset of summer rains.

The SA Weather Service’s Kevin Rae says upper-air highs are well-known to be associated with large-scale air stability and sinking air masses.

“These systems inhibit thunderstorm development, but perhaps more importantly in this case, the sinking air heats up quite dramatically,” a statement reads.

The weather service says heatwave conditions are expected to continue over the eastern part of the country until Friday with no signs of rain any time soon.

The weather service has stressed the importance of hydration, particularly for infants and small children, during a heatwave and to avoid over-exertion when exercising.

The fire danger index also warns of dangerous to extremely dangerous conditions over the largest part of South Africa.