3 Aug 2022
A fierce cold front has hit the south and centre of Namibia and temperatures have dropped below freezing point in some areas. A low pressure area has caused freezing rain or hail in some areas.
On the farm Orion on the D 804 about 90 km southeast of Maltahöhe. There was frost. Farmer couple Wihan and Elize Cilliers sent NamibiaFocus photos last night that could as well have come from Scandinavia.
"The temperature was still minus 3 degrees at 11.00 in the morning," the farmer texted. "At 5pm there were still patches of hail that did not dissipate."
And what about the sheep? "We will see tomorrow during the day if we have lost any animals," was the response last night. "The night will be very cold and wet as the ground is soggy. As long as there is no wind, they should be fine."
Freezing rain and hail also caused damage to the farmhouse. More precisely: in the house. "It's a mess," Elize Cilliers reports. "The melt water from the hail on the roof seeped through the zinc and through the ceiling of the rooms and dripped onto our furniture. It was a shock."
But there is something good about the (icy) winter rain. "We will hopefully have a good start with green pasture when it gets warmer," says the farming couple." There's always something to be thankful for."
Icy air from Antarctica moves across southern Africa with cold fronts. Low pressure areas can also bring winter rains. If both phenomena come together, the rain also falls as snow, sleet or hail. Already during the first heavy cold front in mid-June, it snowed a little here and there in southern Namibia.
The website Namibia Weather reported the lowest temperatures from the east of the country (7.00 am today): Minus 3 degrees in Gobabis and minus 2.5 degrees at Kalahari Farmhouse in Stampriet. Windhoek reported (plus) 2.7 degrees.
Towards the north, the early morning lows rose: King Nehale Lodge on the eastern edge of the Etosha Pan 3.3 degrees, Hakusembe River Lodge near Rundu 7.3 degrees, Etosha Safari Lodge south of Okaukuejo 4.9 degrees, Palmwag Lodge & Camp west of Etosha 6 degrees and Omarunga Epupa-Falls Camp near Epupa Falls on the Kunene 9.7 degrees.
The town of Aus in south-eastern Namibia, on the other hand, was spared sub-zero temperatures. The weather station of Klein-Aus Vista reported 5.7 degrees. Usually, cold fronts with their cold air from the Antarctic ensure an icy start to the day there. Snow is also not unknown in Aus.
During the day, however, it is usually not cold even in the Namibian winter. Daytime highs are usually between 15 and 25 degrees. If there is a light wind, however, you are grateful for a jumper and like to sit in the sun in a spot sheltered from the wind.
Sven-Eric Stender
Sorry, we can’t seem to find any matches for your search. Have a look at our popular searches below.
