Forecast for several days, the cold front long expected to grip South Africa is here and with it extreme weather conditions that may make it feel like we’re in the dead of Winter, even though we’re still technically in Autumn.
According to Gauteng Weather, the temperatures in South Africa’s most metropolitan province are expected to plummet to 2°C in Johannesburg and only reach highs of 14°C. Meanwhile Pretoria residents can expect a bit warmer weather but not by much, with minimums of 4°C and highs of 16°C.
The Western Cape is also expected to be buffeted by extreme weather conditions, especially in more elevated areas according to the South African Weather Service. These areas, including mountain tops in Eastern Cape and Lesotho, could experience light snow fall.
The cold will also bring dryness and heavy winds to areas like the Beaufort West Municipality of the Western Cape, Thembelihle Municipality of Northern Cape and even northern areas of Free State. The service warns residents of high likelihood of fire conditions for these areas.
Navigate the cold front: 5 things to keep in mind
Level 2 weather warning
SAWS has indicated that the extreme weather sweeping across the country has necessitated a Level 2 Impact warning. South Africans can expect windy conditions to disrupt navigations at sea and disruptions at small harbours and ports, while icy roads are possible due to the cold weather, especially in the morning.
South Africans should be take care in driving in colder areas where roads may be more difficult to navigate. This may result in increased travel time. SAWS has also warned residents of formal and informal settlements of localised damage due to the high winds and potential service disruptions.
Dress warmly during the cold front
Johannesburg Emergency Services has also issued a warning to residents of the city to prepare for “extremely cold temperatures in most parts.”
Residents should dress warmly, especially if they are working away from home. They should be prepared for cold winds, so it’s officially time to take out your windbreakers and scarves. SAWS says that the cold winds will likely disrupt outside activities this week.
Though no rains are expected in Gauteng, residents of the Western Cape should bring their waterproof jackets out, or otherwise be prepared for sudden onsets of cold, windy rains if traveling on foot. Winds of up to 65km/h are expected in some parts of the Cape, so umbrellas will unfortunately not do much for you in these conditions.
Exercise caution when using heating devices
Perhaps the most important thing to consider is exercising caution with your heating devices. Johannesburg EMS is urgent residents to be very careful with their electrical and especially gas heaters.
“Residents are urged to exercise caution when using heating devices, such as heaters, braziers or paraffin stoves. Do not leave them unattended, so that we can prevent fire incidents which might occur at home during these extremely cold temperatures,” Robert Mulaudzi, Joburg EMS spokesperson, told The Citizen.
The warning follows the tragic deaths of four toddlers after a fire at a creche in Mayfair, Johannesburg, which Joburg EMS said was likely started by a heating device in use before the fire started.
The emergency services said they were in high alert, monitoring all seven regions of the city in case any emergency occured.
Potential loadshedding
As the mercury drops and heaters are back in use, the increased demand could see loadshedding return, especially if Eskom experiences any unplanned outages. The utility has promised South Africans that there won’t be any loadshedding during the colder winter months.
In its last update before the cold front took place, Eskom said that the power system was stable and that it expected loadshedding to stay suspended. On Monday this week, it planned to add 2 600MW of additional capacity.
If unplanned outages stay below 13 000MW of lost capacity, loadshedding will be kept at bay, but if unplanned outages exceed 15 000MW, even with high demand, we can expect up to Stage 2 loadshedding to return. Eskom says this worst-case scenario will only see Stage 2 outages limited to 21 days.
When will the cold front end?
SAWS has indicated that the cold front currently gripping South Africa will take place from the evening on 19th May to 23rd May 2025 – Tuesday to Friday. The weather is expected to begin mellowing out during the weekend.
The most extreme conditions are expected from Tuesday, especially at the coast, though by Wednesday it will reach Gauteng and the eastern parts of South Africa.
