Tornado confirmed in Bishopstowe as KZN enters April storm period

The South African Weather Service (Saws) has confirmed that a short-lived tornado occurred in Bishopstowe, Pietermaritzburg on Sunday evening after a brief but intense storm. According to the weather service, a weak storm developed just after 5pm near Bishopstowe and remained mostly in one area. It said the area’s curved landscape may have helped the storm to rotate, with early signs also pointing to possible small hail.

“Conditions worsened when stronger storms moved in from the west, bringing more wind, moisture and instability creating the right conditions for a brief tornado between 5:20pm and 5:40pm,” Saws said. “Monitoring the system became more difficult as daylight faded, with sunset at 5:51pm and changing EUMETSAT satellite imagery making it harder to track finer details in real time.” The incident comes as KwaZulu-Natal experiences increased storm activity, with experts warning that April is a particularly unstable time of year. The Severe Weather and Information Centre SA (Swaicsa) has warned that the shift from summer to winter creates unstable atmospheric conditions, as warm, moist air over KZN interacts with cooler systems moving in from the south and west.

“This combination often leads to rapid thunderstorm development, with storms able to strengthen quickly and, in some cases, produce severe weather such as hail, strong winds or even tornadoes,” it said. Swaicsa added that this pattern may continue, noting that April is also the peak period for cut-off low systems, slow-moving weather systems that can bring heavy rain and flooding.