The wet weather experienced over most of the interior is likely to continue for another two days before starting to clear up, Weather SA said on Monday.
Forecaster Siyabonga Mphethwa said the rain is caused by a tropical low that moved in over the northern part of South Africa on Friday from Mozambique.
”One of the trademarks of a tropical system is that it sits over an area and dumps a large amount of rain,” Mphethwa said.
According to official figures, Kareedouw in the Eastern Cape had 100mm of rain on Sunday night, while Potgietersrus in Limpopo recorded 70mm.
Gauteng also recorded high rainfall figures. On farms near Heidelberg, 150mm were recorded over the weekend.
These figures, Mphethwa said, were not official.
He said the present rain should be enough to break the drought in the northern parts of the country.
The rainy weather is expected to start clearing from Wednesday.
The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry said water is beginning to flow into the major dams.
Spokesperson Johan van Heerden said it is too early, though, to say how much the dams will rise.
”The water is still on its way. Good rain fell in the catchment areas, but we can’t predict the impact yet,” he said.
The Grootdraai Dam at Standerton in Mpumalanga is already more than 100% full.
Van Heerden said since most of the dams are fairly empty, they will be able to absorb a large inflow.
No reports of floods have yet been received. — Sapa