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More snowfall and heavy rain forecast for KZN, Eastern Cape and Western Cape

More snowfall and heavy rain forecast for KZN, Eastern Cape and Western Cape
A man attends to his car in the recent snow. (Photo: Alon Skuy / Gallo Images)
Lerato Mutsila
By Lerato Mutsila
29 Sep 2024
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KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Western Cape are gearing up for inclement weather after the South African Weather Service issued warnings of more snowfalls and thundershowers.

A week after up to 30cm of snow blanketed high-lying areas of KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Free State, the South African Weather Service (Saws) has warned residents to brace for more snowfall and heavy rain in high-lying areas of the Eastern Cape, southern KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape on Monday.

Saws said the snowfall would be light, unlike last week’s weather event, which left thousands stranded on the N3 in KZN and resulted in the death of Nozibele Nzonzo, who succumbed to hypothermia while trapped in a taxi on the N3.

snowfalls kzn eastern cape western cape A man attends to his car in the snow. (Photo: Alon Skuy / Gallo Images)



In its initial weather alert at the weekend, Saws said the snowfall was expected to start in the Western Cape early on Sunday morning, before spreading eastward towards KZN on Monday morning. The accumulation of snow is expected to be less than 2cm.

However, the alert was updated and snowfalls in regions of the Western Cape were expected only on Monday.

Read more: From stranded to saved: how the N3 snowstorm brought South Africans together in kindness

KZN acting on last week’s lessons 


At a media briefing on Thursday, 26 September, MEC for Transport and Human Settlements in KZN Siboniso Duma said that in light of the heavy snowfall last weekend, the department had decided to strengthen its road safety measures by coordinating joint operations in areas commonly affected by inclement weather.

Duma said the Road Traffic Inspectorate would establish a satellite centre on top of Van Reenen’s Pass to ensure quick action and road closures to prevent people becoming trapped by snow. The satellite base began operating on Saturday.

Traffic officers will be deployed to all major routes, with a focus on the N3 between Harrismith and the Tugela Toll Plaza, the R617 between Kokstad and Underberg, the N2 in Ingeli and the N3 in Mooi River.

Duma said more than 10 graders would be stationed on the identified routes to remove snow before it accumulated on the roads. The province’s 21 graders had been placed on standby to strengthen prevention measures.

EWN reported that Duma’s spokesperson, Ndabezinhle Sibiya, said an inspection at the top of Van Reenen’s Pass would be conducted on Sunday afternoon.

“We must hasten to point out that we regard the light snowfall as extremely dangerous. We state this because it greases up the roads, which leads to road accidents. Because the South African drivers are not trained to drive in the snow, we urge motorists to reschedule or postpone their journeys in anticipation of any eventuality,” said Sibiya.

Read more: Snowstorm chaos – what went wrong?

KZN is also bracing for localised flooding as heavy rains have been forecast in the region from Sunday until Tuesday.

KZN Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Thulasizwe Buthelezi said disaster management teams were on high alert and would monitor areas prone to weather-related incidents. 

He advised residents to exercise caution during long trips and urged parents to ensure children did not play in large unguarded bodies of water. 

Eastern Cape 


Spokesperson for the Eastern Cape Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Mamnkeli Ngam said that while the department did not anticipate the closure of any roads, they were keeping a close watch on passes in Joe Gqabi and Chris Hani district municipalities.

If snowfall does necessitate the closure of passes in these municipalities, Ngam said the Road Incident Management System would advise motorists on alternative routes.

“Travellers and other road safety users are advised to always look out for alerts and warnings from Saws and the media. Stay alert and stay alive,” said Ngam.

Western Cape


The Karoo and the Cape Winelands are expected to experience 5-15cm of snow on Monday evening.

“It’s not as intense as what we saw in KZN, but … we have all our resources on standby should anything happen,” said Western Cape head of disaster management Colin Deiner.  

Deiner said no roads had been closed but the disaster management centre was monitoring the Swartberg Pass, Franschhoek Pass and Hex River Pass.

“Travel is a big risk, especially on the mountain passes where it could be wet and slippery. It’s not at all suitable for driving [in these conditions]. I normally say in cases like this, if you don’t have to go somewhere, it’s better to just stay put,” said Deiner. DM

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