GMet predicts heavy rain in northern Ghana

In a release issued by the agency last Wednesday just before the season begins, GMet said an early dry spell was expected to be short, lasting between seven and nine days for most places in the northern and transition parts of the country, while most places in the Upper West and some few places in the Upper East Region would experience between 10 and 13 days of dry spells.

 In the later stages of the season, long dry spells of between 10 and 18 days were expected over most parts of the northern and transition zones.

Early dry spell is defined as the longest successive dry days during the first 50 days from the start of the season while late dry spell is defined as the longest successive dry day from the 51st day after the start of the season to the end of the season. 

This was contained in the seasonal forecast for the northern sector made available to the Daily Graphic, with the agency indicating that to mitigate any risk, a number of measures must be put in place by the disaster management agencies, municipal and district assemblies, and individuals to safeguard lives and property. 

The Head, Research and Applied Meteorology Directorate of the Ghana Meteorological Agency, Francisca Martey, said the disaster management sector,  “in the event of risk due to flooding,  must integrated monitoring and early warning systems to be established and operationalised.”

Also, she recommended that exchanges between the agencies in charge of flood monitoring, disaster risk reduction and humanitarian aid should be escalated while the public, particularly those in the exposed areas were sensitised to the impending danger. 

“The municipal and metropolitan authorities and the National Disaster Agency are advised to put in place the necessary measures to ensure communities and livelihoods are safeguarded,” she said.