South Africa Facing its Hottest Year Ever

Second Heatwave of Year Hits South Africa

The heatwave is forecast to persist until Thursday with maximum temperatures hovering around 40°C in the northeast of the country.

The extreme weather conditions are forecast to persist in South Africa throughout the summer. The country is facing what may be its hottest year ever, said a report, as its largest city Johannesburg [metro pop: 4.5 million] announces water restrictions.

The country has already experienced two seasons of below-normal rainfall. Consequently, farmers are forced to plant only 2.5 million hectares of maize, a 3.8 percent reduction from last year, said a report.

Authorities have declared the provinces of Kwazulu Natal and Free State as disaster areas due to drought.  Two additional areas—Limpopo and Mpumalanga— are also expected to declare agricultural disaster, the report added.

“South Africa’s first maize production forecast estimates the 2015 harvest to be the worst in eight years,” according to a UN report released earlier this year. The farmers stand to lose up to R10 billion this year.

Last year, the drought destroyed about a third of the nation’s maize crop.

 

Deadly Quake Strikes South Africa

DEADLY EARTHQUAKE
INDUCED SEISMICITY
SCENARIOS 222, 08
.

M5.3 Strikes Near Orkney, South Africa

Centered at 26.986°S, 26.741°E the rare quake struck at a depth of about 10.0km (6.2mi), said USGS/EHP.

The epicenter was located about 125 km (73 miles) southwest of Johannesburg, and 199km (124mi) SW of Pretoria, South Africa. The quake, which killed at least one person, is said to be the largest in the southern Africa region since 2006, when a magnitude 7.0 shock occurred in  Zimbabwe, according to Geological Survey of South Africa.

Induced Seismicity

There is increasing evidence that some earthquakes are  triggered or caused by human activities. Although the area around JHB is not prone to seismicity, it is plagued by the deepest gold mines in the world.

---

IMPORTANT NOTICE: FIRE-EARTH EQ Forecast.  For detailed FIRE-EARTH Earthquake Forecasts tune into FIRE-EARTH Reports daily @ 06:32UTC.

---