According to a recent report by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), 2015 may be the hottest year ever recorded in Africa.
The report further explains that this may partially be due to climate change and partially because of the strong El Nino phase that we’re currently in.
El Nino refers to the irregular intervals at which the surface temperatures of pacific seas become either warmer or cooler.
With weather temperatures averaging in the mid-30s, inland towns and cities, such as Johannesburg and Pietermaritzburg, are facing searing 40°C heat.
The potentially dangerous effects of the heatwave have been stressed repeatedly, but northerners are making the best of sweaty conditions: