The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has often appealed to the public to adhere to basic fire safety measures to help reduce the occurrence of fire outbreaks during the harmattan season.
To them, the period and particularly when it becomes severe, makes the weather a fertile ground for fire outbreaks.
Divisional Officer Grade III, Fiifi Oppong of the Tema divisional Fire Service speaking on Tema based radio station, Plan-B FM morning show dubbed ‘Nkosuo Nsem’, stated that the harmattan season is here again with its attendant bushfires and various climatic hazards associated with it, coupled with the damage done to life and property.
As a matter of fact and without exception, no season of the year comes without affecting people’s lives, but the negative effects of harmattan season seem to outweigh its benefits derived from the other seasons.
Mr. Oppong said there must be caution when setting fires during harmattan periods, because they could lead to unforeseen or unintended disasters with far reaching consequences.
Fire outbreaks, according to him caused by the dry and dusty wind are becoming widespread, with the attendant losses. He continued that since human and material toll from fire outbreaks are getting increasingly high, there was therefore the need for the government and the public to embrace safety measures that are expected to mitigate these avoidable losses.
Addressing the issue of fire outbreaks during dry season, Divisional Officer Grade III Oppong noted that harmattan brings desert-like weather conditions and added that it lowers the humidity, dissipates cloud cover, prevents rainfall formation and sometimes creates big clouds of dust which can result in dust storms or sandstorms.
The wind he stated could see an upsurge in fire risk and cause severe crop damage. He continued that the harmattan is a dry, dusty wind that blows from the Sahara desert in late December and continues sometimes until early February. He told listeners that in most years it is somewhat pleasant because it dims the sun and decreases the humidity
He warned that during cooking, people especially women must exhibit a lot of caution in starting fire which according to him when not controlled could cause a lot of havoc due to the dry weather
For persons who use candles, he advise that it is imperative to always ensure that these candles are blown off when leaving their rooms. He continued that same advice should go for people who lit mosquito quells during night.
Concluding, he urge people to ensure that during cooking, towells, pot holders and curtains should be kept away from flames. He added that items like matches, lighters and other ignitable substances should also be secured in location that are a bit far from fire places and out of the reach of children while urging the use of lighters with child-resistant features
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