No floods expected in coming rainy season

Rainfall in August will mark the end of the dry season although it will unlikely be too heavy to cause floods, weather experts have said. The Rwanda Meteorology Agency indicated in its weather forecast for the period of August to October, which is usually a transition period spanning the end of the dry season and the start of the short rain season. The period will experience near-normal or slightly above normal rainfall generally across the country. It, however, warns that the prediction should not be used in isolation of “more detailed forecasts and warnings that are available from the Rwanda Meteorological Agency.” The forecast divides Rwanda into five zones, with Rusizi Zone in the west predicted to have the heaviest rain of up to 352mm, while Ngoma Zone in the east will experience the least with 191mm of rainfall. Chances of below normal rain The City of Kigali is predicted to experience rainfall ranging between 183mm and 226mm, while the northern and southern zones of Gicumbi and Nyamagabe will experience rain of up to 318mm and 288mm, respectively. Although near-normal to above-normal rainfall is most likely, there remains a chance of 30 per cent of experiencing below normal rainfall, according to Anthony Twahirwa, the head of weather forecasting at the meteorological agency. “General conditions will be near normal, although variations should not be totally ruled out. It is, therefore, advisable to plan for a range of possible rainfall conditions,” Twahirwa said in an interview yesterday. “Farmers should prepare their land because we expect higher rains in September to December and we will publish a forecast for that period as well.” The forecast was announced in consideration of influences of global oceans on seasonal rainfall in Rwanda and also relied on data from the World Meteorological Organisation.

National

No floods expected in coming rainy season