South Africa Experienced Heavy Rain and Strong Winds with Temperature Drop in Past 5 Days

Mainly Fair to Cloudy Weather Expected in the Coming Week

Over the past 5 days (June 7-11),  affected by the upper-level trough and mid-latitude cyclone, South Africa, Lesotho, and surrounding areas experienced heavy rainfall and strong winds with a significant drop in temperatures. Accumulated rainfall in southern South Africa reached 20-70 mm, with parts of the Eastern Cape Province and Western Cape Province receiving 90-150 mm (Fig. 1). On June 10, parts of the Eastern Cape Province experienced heavy to torrential rain, and snowfall in high-altitude areas. Temperatures dropped by 4-8°C across the aforementioned regions, accompanied by winds of 6 to 8 on the Beaufort scale, with gusts reaching 9 to 10 in parts of the Eastern Cape Province.

In the coming week, South Africa will mainly experience fair to cloudy weather, with temperatures gradually rising. On June 17-18, light rain will occur in the western and southern parts of South Africa, accompanied by winds of 4 to 6 (Fig. 2).

Figure 1: Accumulated Rainfall from June 7 to 12, 2025 (Unit: mm)

Figure 2: Forecast of 24-hour rainfall (shaded, units: mm), 850 hPa wind field (wind barbs, units: m/s), and 500 hPa geopotential height field (contours, units: dagpm) at 20:00 (Beijing Time) on June 17, 2025

Author: Min Yue                                 Reviewer: Wang Guanlan 

English reviewer:Wang Yi                                                                        Issue approver:Dai kan