Together with that, farmers are warned to protect their animals as far as possible from these icy conditions. According to Snow Report SA, snow could occur later this week in KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State, and parts of Mpumalanga. Michael Nethavani, a forecaster at the Bloemfontein weather office, says rain and cold conditions can occur on Friday and Saturday in the southern and eastern parts of the Free State while snow is expected during the same period in Lesotho and also at the Van Reenen's Pass in the far eastern parts of the Free State. OFM News' Christal-Lize Muller spoke to him...

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He says this is due to a cold front from the Western Cape moving through the country. 

Nethavani says the mercury will drop rapidly in areas in the southern and eastern parts of the Free State by Friday with temperatures between 16 and 18 Degrees Celsius along the Lesotho border. In the mountainous areas of Lesotho maximum temperatures of between 12 and 14 degrees Celsius can be expected and these temperatures can even drop further by Saturday. He says temperatures can drop to between 9 and 10 degrees Celsius along the border and areas at the Lesotho mountain range.    

The highest chance of rain will occur in areas adjacent to Lesotho in the eastern part of the Free State at Bethlehem and Vrede.  Rain is also forecast for certain areas in the North West. According to him, the highest rainfall figure expected in North West will be in the area of the province surrounding Gauteng. The possibility of rain will go as far as Rustenburg, Pilanesberg, and the Klerksdorp area. 

Little rain is forecast for the Northern Cape, with only a few showers likely to occur in the far southern parts.

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