/ 10 July 2008

Wrap up warmly for the weekend

A chilly weekend lies ahead for most of the country, the South African Weather Service said on Thursday.

It blamed this on the lingering effects of a strong western cold front that brought plummeting temperatures in the past week.

”The front is passing but its after-effects will continue through the weekend,” forecaster Mark Todd said.

According to the weather service, snow is expected over Lesotho during the weekend.

”On Saturday, a band of showers and thundershowers is expected in the eastern half of the country affecting the North West province, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and Mpumalanga.”

These showers are also expected to reach Limpopo by Sunday, Todd said.

He said the cold temperatures being experienced in Gauteng are not yet over.

On Thursday, Gauteng was expected to have an average maximum temperature of 12 degrees Celsius. Bloemfontein, Grahamstown and Ladysmith were also expecting temperatures in the low teens.

Todd said: ”Temperatures of less than 15 degrees Celsius are expected over the weekend in Gauteng.”

Asked whether there was a possibility of snow over Gauteng, he said: ”Over the next seven days it is unlikely as weather reports can only be determined for a week in advance.”

The weather service predicted that the storms ravaging the Western Cape would be over by Friday.

”The rains have subsided and the Cape is expecting a bit of sunny weather with temperatures expected to rise to a maximum of 20 degrees Celsius,” said Todd. — Sapa