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Keep your Dezemba celebrations indoors: Wet weather to continue into long weekend
The first part of the festive season holidays is upon us and many roads are expected to be extra busy.
A motorist jumps to his partially submerged car in Soweto, 9 December 2022, after it was swept away by flash floods on Friday morning after heavy rains overnight. Persistent rain affected various parts of Johannesburg. Picture: Nigel Sibanda
Wet weather conditions are expected to continue unabated over the next couple of days as holidaymakers are expected to start embarking on their journeys across the country.
As a result, motorists are advised to exercise extra caution.
Speaking to The Citizen on Wednesday, forecaster at the South African Weather Service (SAWS) Kholofelo Mahlangu said the level 2 alert for severe thunderstorms over parts of Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape, Gauteng as well as KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) still remain in place for Thursday.
“We are expecting 60% chances of showers and showers for those north-eastern parts of the country and these conditions might be tricky for motorists who will be travelling to various parts of the country over the coming long weekend as some roads might also be slippery.
“We also urge those who will not be travelling to rather try and stay on high ground and avoid low-lying areas and flooded bridges and roads,” Mahlaungu said.
WATCH: Johannesburg has been under water for the past week
North West and Northern Cape to receive heavy rain
She urged residents in areas such as the Bojanala District Municipality in the North West as well as the north-eastern parts of the Northern Cape to be on high alert on Thursday, as more heavy downpours are on the cards.
Many parts of the country have been experiencing heavy rainfall which resulted in several roads being damaged.
Some residents particularly in Soweto, were also forced to flee their homes.
ALSO READ: How floods hurt Joburg: Cars swept away and homes submerged
Other areas where similar weather patterns are expected on Thursday, include Bethlehem and Harrismith in the Free State.
While there has been no alert issued for Friday as yet, Mahlangu said they will continue to monitor the situation as the rain continues into the weekend.
The rainfall that has been experienced since last weekend going into early this week, was as a result of a cut-off-low weather system which made landfall last weekend.
While the system in question was still in place, another one started developing earlier this week and it is the one that’s contributing to the current rainfall which is expected to continue into the long weekend.
Motorists urged to stay safe
Spokesperson for the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) Simon Zwane also called on motorists to be extra cautious when traveling this long weekend.
Zwane said motorists should also be particularly careful when travelling on municipal roads where sinkholes and potholes have been developing.
“We are also expecting peak traffic volumes on our national roads to increase over the next coming days and with more rain that is expected, most roads are likely to be slippery and visibility also poor due to mist.
“We are also calling on motorists to ensure that their vehicle headlights and rear lights including tyres are in good working condition,” Zwane added.
Some of the national roads expected to be busy:
N3 to KZN
N2 to Western Cape and Eastern Cape
R61 to Eastern Cape
Moloto Road
N4 to Mbombela
Meanwhile, the current torrential rainfall is as a result of the third consecutive La Nina weather system.
The weather desk has also for the longest time been warning of above normal rainfall which is expected to last until just before the Autumn season of 2023.
ALSO READ: Expect a wet 2023, with above normal rainfall until expected till autumn
