Rwanda Meteorology Agency has issued a 10-day advisory, warning of strong wind speeds that could reach up to 10m/s in several districts across the country. These include Rutsiro, Karongi, Nyamasheke and Ngororero, with strong winds speed ranging between 6 and 8m/s expected in most of the country. According to the forecast for the second dekad of September, only parts of City of Kigali, as well as Ngoma, Bugesera, Kamonyi and Gakenke districts will experience moderate winds speed ranging between 4 and 6 metres per second.
The agency warned that the high winds, along with other weather events, including lightning strikes, could result in roofs being blown away, trees falling, among others.
As one of the countries highly prone to some catastrophic weather events, including thunderstorms and lightning strikes, Rwanda has had its fair share of Mother Nature’s wrath – more so in recent years with climate hazards becoming more frequent and increasingly unpredictable.
As such, there is a need for us to be more vigilant and proactive in mitigating impacts of extreme weather events.
The country’s meteorological services are understandably highly centralised owing to the high-level of expertise and sophisticated logistical systems needed for weather forecasting.
As a result, the function of issuing severe weather warnings is primarily the responsibility of the Rwanda Meteorological Agency.
However, raising awareness around weather forecasts and the dangers that may lie ahead, and how citizens can best prepare for such by taking concrete steps to mitigate the impacts, is a collective responsibility.
For instance, despite advice from the weather agency and other government authorities for members of the public to take even the most basic precautionary measures (such as not using phones, to switch off the radio or/and TV, to not seek shelter under trees or to stay away from doors and windows when it is raining), few people have changed their attitude. Even fewer have heeded calls to install lightning conductors or to tighten loose roof support.
And the consequences have been severe, with official national statistics showing that disasters killed at least 802 people between 2018 and the first quarter of this year, with more than 1,280 others sustaining injuries.
During the same period, extreme weather events also destroyed 34,568 housing units, killed 1,157 cattle, wreaked havoc on farms, as well as left schools, health centres, roads, and bridges in ruins.
Indeed, it is critical that the task to raise public awareness about the dangers of such weather events and how to mitigate them is the responsibility of not just Meteo Rwanda, or the government, but other stakeholders as well, including faith and opinion leaders, civil society organisations, the media, among others.
Crucially, this should be a continuous effort, and not a one-off, seasonal campaign.