Pretoria - Meteorologists predicted last week that residents of Pretoria and Gauteng generally did not have to worry about the harsh effects of Cyclone Freddy over the weekend, and neither did those in Limpopo and Mpumalanga.
Cyclone Freddy lost its intensity as it hit the country, despite last week’s warning by the the South African Weather Service for residents and emergency and disaster departments to be on high alert in the two provinces.
The natural disaster tore through neighbouring countries, among them Mozambique, and was expected to indirectly affect Mopani and Vhembe districts, Limpopo, and Ehlanzeni in Mpumalanga.
The prediction at the time was that although the cyclone would not hit South African land directly, these parts of the country would indirectly experience heavy rainfall, strong winds, flooding, the collapse of trees and blockage of infrastructure like bridges.
However, speaking to Pretoria News yesterday, senior manager for disaster risk reduction at the SA Weather Service, Tshepo Ngobeni, said the impact of the cyclone, if it was still to occur, would be less than significant after it had lost its intensity in Mozambique.
He said the forecast a few days ago was a wind speed of 110km/h, but by yesterday this had dropped to 45km/hour as Freddy confronted land friction along its course.
“Cyclone Freddy’s impact would not be like that of Dineo,” said Ngobeni
“It is just that these things can be erratic, but we cannot say we still expect damage as its impact could be minimal, giving us some rainfall.
“It is still circulating onland in Mozambique and moving towards Zimbabwe, but we can see the impact on these areas closer to the border will not be significant.
“It has lost its cyclone status now. It is now a low-pressure system with low speed, or what some may call a low-pressure tropical storm,” said Ngobeni.
The cyclone did, however, kill seven people and leave many others displaced as it travelled on its course over Madagascar, heading towards Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
The ANC also called upon those in affected areas to exercise extreme caution and follow the advice issued by disaster management centres.
Pretoria News