EXPLAINER | Has SA's weather gone mad or is this climate change?

From damaging floods to snowfall in spring, weather patterns in recent weeks have South Africans questioning if this is strange or the new normal. Lameez Omajee unpacks with climate scientists and meteorologists about why this is happening

In the past year there have been several notable, extreme weather events. In January the Northern Cape towns of Kakamas and Upington experienced deadly heatwaves that saw temperatures higher than 40 degrees Celsius. Also during the start of the year, Cyclone Freddy caused devastating floods in Madagascar, Mozambique and Malawi, killing more than 1 500 people in these countries.

Just last week, parts of the Free State, the Drakensberg mountains stretching across KwaZulu-Natal and also the southern region of Mpumalanga were decked in snow – in the middle of spring when temperatures should be getting warmer.