The South African Weather Service (SAWS) has issued a yellow level 4 warning for severe thunderstorms over northern KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the south-western Highveld of Mpumalanga today, with heavy downpours, hail and severe lightning expected.

The warning says the storms could cause flooding and damage to infrastructure. The weather service has not stated the hours in the warning details we reviewed, so check its latest updates before travelling.

Where the warnings apply

  • Yellow level 4, severe thunderstorms: northern KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the south-western Highveld of Mpumalanga.
  • Yellow level 2, severe thunderstorms: the eastern Free State and North West, central KwaZulu-Natal, parts of the Mpumalanga Highveld and the Western Bushveld of Limpopo. Localised flooding is possible.
  • Extremely high fire danger: parts of the Northern Cape, Free State and North West, most of Limpopo, northern Gauteng and places in Mpumalanga.

SAWS also warned of hot, humid and very uncomfortable conditions over the north-eastern parts of KwaZulu-Natal.

The forecast by province

Gauteng is expected to be hot to very hot, with scattered showers and thundershowers. KwaZulu-Natal will be warm to hot with scattered showers and thundershowers, becoming cloudy along the coast and adjacent interior in the afternoon. The Western Cape will be cloudy and cool in the west with rain until the afternoon, spreading along the southern coast.

In a post on Thursday, SAWS said: "Partly cloudy & warm to hot conditions are expected, with isolated to scattered thunderstorms possible in the central & eastern parts of the RSA. Severe thunderstorms are possible over the eastern parts of the country."

Safety

Motorists and pedestrians were urged on Thursday to exercise caution as the storms develop, with the risk of localised flooding, hail and damaging winds. Residents in areas under the fire-danger warning should be careful with anything that could start a veld fire.

What we do not yet know

  • The exact hours the level 4 warning is in force. This should be checked with SAWS.
  • Whether the warnings will be extended into the weekend.