Dust storm or what’s coming to Ukraine: what scientists say

1 April 2024 13:05

ЕКСКЛЮЗИВ

Ukraine is experiencing abnormally warm temperatures for April. Scientists are sounding the alarm – in the near future, the country may be covered with sand from the Sahara. Meanwhile, Kyiv residents are already posting videos of the so-called “fog” covering some parts of the capital on their social media. Read the article by Komersant ukrainskyi to find out whether and when a dust storm is expected in Ukraine

Is the dust from the Sahara already in Ukraine?

According to the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre, dust from the Sahara has reached Ukraine today. The centre explained that the dust is clearly visible on a satellite image from the EUMETSAT platform.

Is Saharan dust harmful to health?

Residents of the western region could observe it yesterday, and today the dust has spread to most regions of Ukraine. At the same time, as Ukrainian scientist and atmospheric physicist Vazira Martazinova told reporters, the dust storm will quickly pass through Ukraine.

“Since we have good humidity now, we don’t have to worry. Yes, there will be pollination, but it will last for just a few hours, not days. We can say that the dust is already passing us by,”

– the scientist explained.

How to protect yourself

The Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre emphasised that dust can be harmful to people with respiratory diseases, the elderly and children, so they recommended closing windows.

“Dust is harmful to health. In South Korea, usually when there are dust storms, everyone wears masks to prevent sand from getting into their lungs,”

– vazira Martazinova added.

However, no such storm is expected in Ukraine.

“For a dust storm, the wind speed should be above 12 m/s, and it should last for 3 hours or more. Forecasters at the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre do not expect the wind speed to increase, so there will be no storm this time,”

– said the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre.

Earlier, dust from the Sahara covered Switzerland and France. According to experts, it is about 180,000 tonnes of fine sand dust particles from North Africa. As explained by foreign media, sand particles in the air can colour the landscape yellowish and cause clouds to form. However, this dust does not cause severe health risks.