<<Print>>

With the rainy season fast approaching, the public has been reminded to clean drains and gutters, to allow the free flow of water.

This is because choked drains prevent the easy flow of water, which is a key cause of flooding during the rainy season.

Mr. Michael Padi. Senior meteorologist at the Ghana Meteorological Agency, told the Ghana News Agency that although the southern part of the country was currently experiencing some rainfall, the actual rainy season for the South was expected to begin between the middle and ending of March.

He cautioned however that despite the fact that the current period was a transitional one from the just ended dry harmattan season to the rainy season, Southern Ghana would still experience rainfall accompanied by strong storms.

Mr. Padi said structures that were weak, therefore had to be either strengthened, destroyed or avoided altogether, because strong storms could easily destroy weak structures.

He particularly cautioned against seeking shelter underneath trees during the rains, because typical rainstorms easily uprooted trees, or caused heavy tree branches to break off and fall.

With several drains and gutters choked by waste material, the rainy season is often characterised by wanton flooding, that often results in the loss of life and property.

The destruction of buildings and other forms of structures is also a typical of the rainy season, he said.