• The sun is in the extreme Northern Hemisphere so the north is warming and causing convective activities partly driving monsoons, making them more extreme than usual.
• The Kenya Meteorological Department warned people in Northern Kenya to be on high alert. as winds may uproot trees, cause structural damage
The ferocious winds in Northern Kenya and strong ocean tides are rare but normal, the Met has explained.
The current forecast in Northern Kenya shows winds so violent that they may blow off roofs, uproot trees and cause structural damage.
Meteorologist Dr Richard Muita said such a phenomenon is not unusual, although it is rare.
“Historically, we have seen the weather display the same behaviour, only that people forget because it’s so rare,” he said.
He explained all these processes are controlled by energy from the sun.
“Currently, the sun is in the extreme northern hemisphere so the north is warming up and causing convective activities which partly drive the monsoons, making them extreme than usual,” he said.
Convection is the movement within a liquid or gas driven by differences in temperature.
“That’s why it’s also so cold here in the Southern Hemisphere.”
A monsoon is a seasonal change in the direction of the prevailing, or strongest, winds of a region.
Dr Muita is the assistant director for climate services and head of public weather at the Kenya Meteorological Department.
He said climate change is not necessarily behind the current strong winds and high tides.
“We take caution before we attribute anything to climate change because this must be supported with data. What I can say is that we have seen a high variability of climate systems, the monsoons, typhoons, but it does not mean they were not there before," he told the Star.
Separately, a study published in November 2019 in the journal Nature Climate Change found that winds across the world have been growing faster since about 2010.
The study said global average wind speed increased from about seven mph to about 7.4 mph, increasing the amount of renewable electricity generated by turbines.
In the latest forecast, the Kenya Meteorological Department warned people in northern Kenya should be on high alert.
"Strong southeasterly winds with speeds exceeding 30 knots (15.4 metres/second) are expected over the Coast, Northeast and some parts of the southeastern lowlands," the Met said.
The forecast said rainfall is expected over a few places in Rift Valley highlands, the Lake Victoria Basin and the Coast.
“Cold and cloudy conditions, accompanied by occasional light rains, are expected over the Highlands East of Rift Valley, including Nairobi,” the Met said.
The forecast comes a week after the National Drought Management Authority asked Kenyans to brace for harsh weather conditions between August and December that could lead to severe drought.
NDMA also announced the number of counties affected by drought rose from eight to 10 with fears that it could increase in the coming days.
Devolution CS Eugene Wamalwa said the government was working round the clock to assist vulnerable families.
He named Garissa, Isiolo, Kilifi, Mandera, Samburu, Tana River, Wajir, Lamu, Marsabit and Turkana among the counties hardest hit by the drought.
(Edited by V. Graham