Harmattan: Jos residents worry as freezing weather persists

Residents of Jos, the Plateau State capital, are groaning over the persistent freezing weather in the area.

They said the sudden drop in temperature began in December ending, adding that it was forcing them to remain indoors in the mornings, as the freezing cold being experienced within and outside the state capital was alarming.

Almost everyone you see in the house or outside is wearing a heavy cardigan that will hold body heat.

Meanwhile, as the freezing temperature is biting harder, sellers of warm second-hand clothes such as jackets, sweaters, and socks, among others, are enjoying brisk business.

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Muhammed Shittu, a resident of Jos, while sharing his experience, said, “Actually, it is not easy for me today because everywhere is cold. It is chilly, and that is why I can’t go out now. I will remain indoors until later in the day.”

Another Jos resident, Joshua Odidi, said, “The sudden change in the weather condition is worrisome. It is not easy to wake up in the morning and do house chores, especially where it requires that you touch water. Seeing me in my cardigan now will prove to you that it is very cold.”

Onoja Desmond Sunday, head of the Water Resources Unit of the National Centre for Remote Sensing in Jos, said certain reasons have contributed to the sudden change in temperature in the state.

He said, “The Northwest trade wind, which is the harbinger of the harmattan, has peculiarities such as a cold, dusty, dry and hazy wind from the north.

“Its source is from the tropical air mass temperature of the Pacific and a result of strong pressure which flows across the Sahara Desert.

“Plateau being the corridor of this trade wind, experiences the wind at this period of the year. As the wind ascends the elevation before getting to the Plateau at a higher altitude, which is even more than 1000 meters above sea level, the cold air mass of the North West trade wind suddenly drops further in temperature because of the lapse rate (drop in temperature with height).

“As soon as the wind gets to the plateau, it becomes colder and colder because of the mixture of the wind with the already existing micro cold climate on the Plateau. This gives rise to the temperature that was recorded in recent times as low as 8 degrees Celsius, “ he added.