The Ghana Meteorological Agency has confirmed that the excessively hot weather is as a result of a heat wave and will last until next month.
According to the Chief Forecaster at the Agency, Kafui Quarshiegah, this is because the sun has just crossed the equator and is directly on the earth’s surface.
With temperatures at 32 degrees Celsius even in the mornings, most have wondered what is causing an increase in the sun’s temperature.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Kafui Quarshiegah explained: “Normally around this time of the year, the sun [crosses] the equator and is perpendicular to the earth’s surface so if you’re on the earth’s surface the sun is just directly on your head.”
He said temperatures might increase hour after hour each day until about 3PM each day, adding that the delays in the rain this year is also causing an increase in the sun’s temperature.
“Unfortunately for us around April we should have the clouds which will be preventing some of the heat from the sun but this year, we are not having the clouds as it should be. So we are having a deficit in the rainfall, which is causing the clouds to despair and the sun is still heating up which is causing the heat wave.”
He added, “We are just hoping that by May 10 to 20, we will start seeing some rains coming in so where the clouds will start building up we will have a shade of the sun and therefore, temperatures will go down.”
He advised that people should avoid walking in the sun during the day, take a lot of water to prevent dehydration.
“If you are even a farmer at least work for some time, when the sun is at its peak you just move out, let the sun go down then you come back to the farm but don’t work throughout the period in the sun. Get some shade, hide under it and save yourself some environmental conditions,” he stressed.
The extreme weather condition usually deadly, occurs in the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the U.S. Brutal heat has literally melted roads, ignited forest fires and affected millions around the planet.
