Much of South Africa could experience above-normal rainfall and days that are not as hot as usual in 2026.

If it feels as if the sun has taken a holiday too and the days feel less hot than usual, you're not imagining it. The past two months have shaped up to be wetter and slightly cooler across much of South Africa, particularly in the interior. This has resulted in flooding in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, in addition to golf-ball-sized hail in much of Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

At least four people died due to flooding in KwaZulu-Natal last week, while more than 100 houses were damaged in the province due to severe weather over the weekend. In Gauteng last week, one person reportedly died in Olievenhoutbosch following heavy rainfall.

Of course, the picture has been much different in the Western and Northern Cape and the southwestern parts of the Eastern Cape, where temperatures have been a bit more toasty and the skies drier.

South Africans should brace for more of this, at least for the next few months, as these trends are expected to continue into 2026.

According to the South African Weather Service (Saws), climate models are pointing to weak La Niña to El Niño-Southern Oscillation-neutral conditions persisting through the core of summer.

In plain...