SA Weather Service forecasts below-normal rainfall for Southern Western Cape through autumn

The South African Weather Service reports that forecasts through to autumn indicate below-normal rainfall for the southern parts of the Western Cape.

Low rainfall in the province last winter has already led to increased water demand in the region, with current dam levels lower than they were at this time last year.

Doctor Christien Engelbrecht, Lead Scientist for Long-Range Forecasting at the SA Weather Service, says a South Atlantic high-pressure system is currently affecting weather patterns in the province.

Engelbrecht explains that the specific positioning of this weather system over the region could significantly influence how cold fronts make landfall.

"So typically then what happens is that the frontal systems... the tracks that they follow are more southward due to the position of the South Atlantic high-pressure system."