WEATHER: Heatwaves persist in several provinces, damaging winds expected

Struggling to decide what to wear? Here’s what the weather has in store for South Africa’s nine provinces on Thursday, 12 December.

Visit The South African website for daily weather and temperature updates around South Africa.

Weather conditions and UVB forecast

Gauteng

Temperature: Fine and hot, becoming partly cloudy with isolated showers and thundershowers from the afternoon. It will be very hot in the north.

The expected UVB Sunburn Index: Extreme

DID YOU KNOW

Where does Gauteng rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

Gauteng is the smallest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 18 178 square kilometres.

Where does Gauteng rank in population among South Africa’s provinces?

Gauteng is the biggest in terms of population, with an estimated 16 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of Gauteng?

The administrative capital of the province is Pretoria, which is situated at 25°44′46″S 28°11′17″E.

Mpumalanga

Temperature: Fine and extremely hot in the eastern Lowveld, otherwise partly cloudy and hot to very hot with isolated showers and thundershowers but scattered over the central parts.

DID YOU KNOW

Where does Mpumalanga rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

Mpumalanga is the second smallest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 76 495 square kilometres.

Where does Mpumalanga rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

Mpumalanga is the sixth most populous, with an estimated 4.7 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of Mpumalanga?

The capital and largest city in the province is Mbombela (formerly known as Nelspruit), which is situated at 25°27′57″S 30°59′07″E.

Limpopo

Temperature: Fine in the eastern Lowveld, otherwise partly cloudy and hot to very hot with isolated showers and thundershowers. It will be extremely hot over the Lowveld and Limpopo Valley.

DID YOU KNOW

Where does Limpopo rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

Limpopo is the fifth largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 125 754 square kilometres.

Where does Limpopo rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

Limpopo is the fifth most populous, with an estimated 5.9 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of Limpopo?

The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, which is situated at 23°54′00″S 29°27′00″E.

North West

Temperature: Partly cloudy and very hot with isolated showers and thunder- showers. It will be windy in the south-west.

DID YOU KNOW

Where does the North West rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

The North West is the sixth largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 104 882 square kilometres.

Where does the North West rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

The North West is the seventh most populous, with an estimated 4.2 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of the North West?

Its capital is Mahikeng (formerly known as Mafikeng), which is situated at 25°51′56″S 25°38′37″E.

Free State

Temperature: Partly cloudy, windy and hot to very hot with isolated showers and thunder-showers, except the extreme west.

DID YOU KNOW

Where does the Free State rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Free State is the third largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 129 825 square kilometres.

Where does the Free State rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Free State is the second smallest in terms of population, with an estimated 2.9 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of the Free State?

Formerly known as the Orange Free State, its capital and biggest city is Bloemfontein, South Africa’s judicial capital. It is situated at 29°07′S 26°13′E.

Northern Cape

Temperature: Fine and cool to warm in the west, otherwise partly cloudy, windy and hot to very hot, but extremely hot in the extreme north.

Wind: The wind along the coast will be fresh to strong southerly to south-easterly

DID YOU KNOW

Where does the Northern Cape rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Northern Cape is the largest of South Africa’s nine provinces at 372 889 square kilometres.

Where does the Northern Cape rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Northern Cape is the smallest in terms of population, with an estimated 1.3 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of the Northern Cape?

Its capital is Kimberley, which is situated at 28°44′18″S 24°45′50″E.

Western Cape

Temperature: Cloudy along the south and south-west coasts where light rain is expected, otherwise partly cloudy and cool to warm.

Wind: The wind along the coast will be fresh to strong westerly to south-westerly, but moderate along the west coast.

The expected UVB Sunburn Index: Very high

DID YOU KNOW

Where does the Western Cape rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Western Cape is the fourth largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 129 449 square kilometres.

Where does the Western Cape rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Western Cape is the third most populous, with an estimated 7.2 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of the Western Cape?

The capital city is Cape Town, which is situated at 33°55′31″S 18°25′26″E.

Eastern Cape

The Western half: Partly cloudy and hot to very hot, but cloudy and warm along the coast and adjacent interior with light rain.

The Western half – wind: The wind along the coast will be moderate westerly in the morning, otherwise fresh to strong south-westerly

The Eastern half: Partly cloudy and hot with isolated showers and thundershowers, but scattered over the Wild Coast. It will be cloudy and warm south of the escarpment.

The Eastern half – wind: The wind along the coast will be light and variable at in the morning, otherwise moderate to fresh south-westerly.

DID YOU KNOW

Where does the Eastern Cape rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Eastern Cape is the second largest of South Africa’s nine provinces at 168 966 square kilometres.

Where does the Eastern Cape rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

The Eastern Cape is the fourth biggest in terms of population, with an estimated 6.7 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of the Eastern Cape?

Its capital is Bhisho, which is situated at 32°50′58″S 27°26′17″E.

KwaZulu-Natal

Temperature: Morning fog in places, otherwise partly cloudy and warm to hot but very hot to extremely hot in the north. Isolated showers and thundershowers are expected, except in the north- east.

Wind: The wind along the coast will be moderate to fresh northerly to north-easterly in the north, reaching strong from the afternoon, otherwise moderate to fresh southerly to south- westerly.

The expected UVB Sunburn Index: High

DID YOU KNOW

Where does KwaZulu-Natal rank in size among South Africa’s provinces?

KwaZulu-Natal is the seventh largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, with an area of 94 361 square kilometres.

Where does KwaZulu-Natal rank in population size among South Africa’s provinces?

KwaZulu-Natal is the second most populous, with an estimated 11.5 million inhabitants as per the most recent census in 2020.

What is the capital of KwaZulu-Natal?

The capital city is Pietermaritzburg, which is situated at 29°37′S 30°23′E.

WEATHER ALERTS

IMPACT-BASED WARNINGS

Yellow level 1 warning: Damaging wind leading to difficulty in navigation at sea, and small vessels at risk of capsizing in locality is expected between Table Bay and Plettenberg Bay from late afternoon.

FIRE DANGER WARNINGS

Extremely high fire danger conditions are expected over the north-eastern parts of Western Cape, western and northern parts of Eastern Cape, most parts of Northern Cape, western parts of North West, western parts of Free State and the southern Lowveld of Limpopo.

ADVISORIES

A Heat Wave with persistently high temperatures is expected over the northern interior of the Eastern Cape until Thursday (12 December 2024) and over Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Free State and the northern and north-western parts of KwaZulu-Natal until at least Friday (13 December 2024).

What’s the weather like in your area?

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Weather forecast data provided by the South African Weather Service.

For a detailed forecast of your province, click here.