Home South African PICS & VIDEO: Another tornado hits KZN

PICS & VIDEO: Another tornado hits KZN

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Residents have been warned to take precautions as a mega storm rolls into the province.

Durban – Another tornado hit KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday as officials warned residents to take precautions as a mega storm rolled into the province.

Storm Report SA received several pictures and video from residents in Bergville in the KZN Midlands of another tornado that formed in the area on Thursday. It was unclear if anyone was injured.

The tornado formed two days after another one ripped through a farming community of in New Hanover in the KZN Midlands on Tuesday, killing two people and leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

The SA Weather service said that tornadoes are  not uncommon in South Africa, and normally occur in the spring and summer period, an SA Weather Service forecaster said.

Another view from Showan Marescia of a Tornado in the Bergville area in KZN.

This is still unconfirmed and a developing story.pic.twitter.com/nk6Zo5NOi9

— Storm Report SA (@StormReportSA1)November 14, 2019

Tokelo Chiloane said tornadoes occurred during severe thunderstorms which included strong winds.

The lifespan of a tornado was between three to five minutes, said Chiloane, adding that South African tornadoes differed from tornadoes that occurred in countries like the US, where they could last for hours.

This was because the dynamics in South Africa and the southern hemisphere were different to those of the northern hemisphere. One of the conditions that differed was the wind direction.

Photos sent Storm Report SA by Showan Marescia of a Tornado in the Bergville area in KZN.

In the northern hemisphere, the wind direction in tornadoes was anti-clockwise, while in the southern hemisphere it was clockwise.

Another characteristic was that tornadoes in the southern hemisphere had warm air coming from the equator and cold air coming from the South Pole converging, and South Africa was in the middle of these two air currents, said Chiloane.

She said the weather service had issued an alert for severe thunderstorms for the eastern, central and northern parts of KwaZulu-Natal, lasting until tomorrow afternoon. She said there was a chance of flooding along the entire coast. This was due to a passing cut-off low – or low-pressure weather system – which was expected to have left the country by Friday afternoon. 

We have confirmation from the eye witness that the tornado touched the ground multiple times!

— Storm Report SA (@StormReportSA1)November 14, 2019

Meanwhile, the KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Sipho Hlomuka, has warned of a mega storm set to lash parts of the province on Thursday and Friday.

Speaking at an emergency media briefing on Thursday morning, Hlomuka said the Disaster Risk Management Centre received a further advice by the South African Weather Service of adverse weather which indicates that heavy rain, as high as 150mm or more and strong gale-force winds are expected all over the province on Thursday and Friday. 

⚠BREAKING

More footage coming in from Showan Marescia of a Tornado in the Bergville area in KZN.

This is still unconfirmed and a developing storypic.twitter.com/KaoIzU7zI3

— Storm Report SA (@StormReportSA1)November 14, 2019

“The expected storms are likely to be coupled with gale-force winds, mud slides, hail storms and localised flooding. The intensity of these rains is anticipated to be greater than that experienced in April 2019, during Easter holidays,” he said. 

Hlomuka said a Provincial Joint Operation Centre in eThekwini, has been set up which will coordinate province-wide responses to imminent crises as they unfold. This is operating 24/7 from the eThekwini Disaster Management Centre.  

Video from Lindokuhle Nkosi

Tornado in Drakensberg KZN Bergville next to Kilburn Dam recorded live just a few minutes ago.pic.twitter.com/wEB8CV6oOq

— Storm Report SA (@StormReportSA1)November 14, 2019

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