The South African Weather Service on Wednesday said the unusual rainfall, known as La Niña, is expected to cause more disruptive rain for the rest of the summer and into autumn.
Persistent rainfall in Gauteng in the last few weeks has left the Vaal Dam now over 110% full, while other parts of the country like the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal experience flooding.
The Department of Cooperative Governance said so far, 82 people have died in drowning and lightning incidents across the country this season.
“We are currently in a La Niña, which means for our summer rainfall region, we are expecting above-normal rainfall. So, this forecast has been in play already. Last year, our seasonal forecasters were seeing the signals for our summer season. So, as we’ve seen, it has happened,” explained forecaster, Elizabeth Viljoen.
-EWN
In other news – WATCH: Chaos as people loot money from cash-in-transit van after robbers left
Suspects bombed a cash-in-transit vehicle along the N7 on-ramp in Cape Town on Tuesday which led to a frenzy on the busy road as by-standers swarmed the cash van and began taking the money that spilled onto the road.
The scene unfolded before the eyes of motorists before 7 pm as police managed to arrest four suspects. Video footage of the scene shows a shoot-out in traffic as the suspects tried to evade arrest. Learn More
