Orange Level 5 warning issued for severe thunderstorms in Northern Cape
· The South African
The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued an Orange Level 5 warning for severe thunderstorms over parts of the Northern Cape.
The storms could cause flooding, damaging winds and hail, while excessive lightning may disrupt municipal services.
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Orange Level 5 warning
The east-central parts of the Northern Cape face the highest risk, with severe thunderstorms expected to cause:
- Flooding in formal and informal settlements, as well as roads and bridges.
- Wind and hail damage to buildings and other structures.
- Falling trees.
- Disruptions to municipal services because of excessive lightning.
Yellow Level 4 thunderstorm warning
SAWS has also issued a Yellow Level 4 warning for severe thunderstorms over the central and eastern parts of the Northern Cape, western Free State, extreme western North West and southern KwaZulu-Natal.
The storms could cause localised flooding in low-lying areas, roads and bridges, as well as wind and hail damage. Falling trees, excessive lightning and disruptions to municipal services are also possible.
Strong winds and dangerous coastal conditions
A Yellow Level 4 warning for damaging winds covers the western Northern Cape, central and north-eastern Western Cape, and most of KwaZulu-Natal, except the south-west.
The strong winds could damage settlements, disrupt power and communication services and create dangerous conditions because of flying debris. High-sided vehicles could also face difficulties on routes exposed to crosswinds.
SAWS has also warned of damaging winds and waves between Alexander Bay and Plettenberg Bay, which could disrupt ports and harbours and create dangerous conditions for vessels at sea.
Along the KwaZulu-Natal coast, damaging winds could disrupt ports and harbours and create a danger to navigation. A Yellow Level 2 warning for damaging waves is also in place along the coast.
A Yellow Level 2 warning for damaging winds covers parts of the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga.
The affected areas include the western and southern Western Cape, north-western interior of the Eastern Cape, and southern and central parts of Mpumalanga.
The winds could damage temporary structures and settlements and affect transport routes and travel services.
More severe thunderstorms
Another Yellow Level 2 warning for severe thunderstorms covers the eastern Free State, central and eastern North West, southern Gauteng and south-western Mpumalanga.
These storms could produce damaging winds and hail, falling trees and disruptions to municipal services because of excessive lightning.
Flooding risk in Eastern Cape
A Yellow Level 2 warning for disruptive rainfall is in place over the eastern parts of the Eastern Cape.
The rainfall could cause localised flooding of settlements, roads, low-lying areas and bridges.