HARMATTAN AND FIRES

Background

If you live anywhere in West Africa or have ever visited West Africa between December and February, you will be very familiar with Harmattan. Harmattan is unique for its dry winds. These winds originate from the Sahara and are carried by a North-East trade wind current throughout West Africa between December and February. Apart from the impaired visibility issues associated with Harmattan, it also causes combustible materials to become extremely dry. It does this by dying up all the water contents in combustible materials, especially grasses. This subsequently presents a fire risk.

Preventing Fires Associated with Harmattan

If your live in areas where there are heavy bushes and grasses, you may want to cut the bushes and grasses because small sparks can ignite the dry grasses and bushes and subsequently result to a fire outbreak. It is always better to prevent fires that worry about extinguishing them after they have started.

Similarly, another way to prevent fires associated with Harmattan, you may start a controlled fire to clear the dry bushes and grasses. Notwithstanding, I personally don't recommend this method because it emits carbon monoxide that intoxicates the environment and can lead to a major fire disaster if it is not monitored adequately. Please clear the grasses and bushes around your homes during December and February, you may be saving lives and property by doing this.

For more questions about Harmattan Fires I am sure the kind people at +Firefighter World, +FirefighterLog, +Golden Isles FirePreventionTeam, +Colorado FirePrevention, +Harmattan, +Jarrod Brewer, +Lionel Horry, +CANADA FIRE , +Kelly Matiowski, +London Fire Protection    will be willing to help answer your questions. Thank you.