NiMet Warns Of Impending Dust Haze, Cautions Asthmatic Patients, Airline Operators

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) raised the alarm on the looming threat of dense dust hazes set to blanket the northern regions within the next 24 hours.

NiMet advised airline operators, and patients with asthma and other respiratory diseases to be cautious of the predicted weather situation.

The Agency made this known in a statement issued via its X handle (formerly known as Twitter) on Wednesday.

According to a release from the Agency, “The Inter-Tropical Discontinuity, ITD (currently at about 9.60N Lat) is expected to retreat slightly Southwards in the next 24hrs.

“Winds over 10m and 925hPa (700m) are favourable for Dust-Haze propagations into the Northern parts of the country.

“Stations in the source region (Sahara Desert) from Chad (Faya-Largeau, Bol-Berim, Mongo, Abeche and Ndjamena) and sources from Niger, which shares a border with Northern Nigeria (Diffa, Maine-Soroa, Goure, Bila, Maradi, Zinder and Birni-n-Konni), have been reporting Dust-Haze in poor horizontal visibility between 300m and 5000m in the last 24hrs.” the alert reads.

NiMet also cautioned citizens, especially in states like Katsina, Kano, Nguru, Jigawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Potiskum, and Maiduguri, where deteriorating horizontal visibility is anticipated.

NiMet emphasised the need for public vigilance, stating, “People with Asthma and other respiratory issues should exercise caution due to the suspended dust particles in the atmosphere.”

Furthermore, the agency issued a directive to airline operators, advising, “Get updated weather reports from NiMet for effective planning in your operations, considering the expected adverse weather conditions.”

NiMet assured the public of continuous weather monitoring, pledging to provide timely updates to ensure public safety.