Some residents of Jos-Bukuru metropolis in Plateau State have expressed mixed concerns about the first rainfall in the city on Saturday evening.

The downpour came between 3:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., with hailstones that kept most residents indoors until it stopped.

Some residents recalled that the city had witnessed severe cold weather from December 2022, to the second week of January before the rain fell.

They noted that the situation was, however, different in the last few days where the temperature was high to a suspicious point.

Paul Jatau, a resident of Jos, said that it was unusual for the city to witness rain in January.

“Usually, harmattan starts in December and ends sometimes in February.

“For us to witness rain now, it means climate change is real and we need to play our parts to protect our environment,” he advised.

Another resident in Jos, Sylvanus Namang, said that the rain was a sign of good things to come to the state in 2023.

Mr Namang, who is the Publicity Secretary of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Plateau, said that God sent the rain to cool the heated political atmosphere ahead of the general elections.

“Plateau is unique state blessed with clement weather and anytime the weather is threatened, God has way of ensuring that the state, particularly Jos, remain cool and peaceful for everyone,” he said.

Another resident, Blessing Cosmas, said that the early rain was a clear sign of global warming.

Mrs Cosmas said that this year’s harmattan period was shorter than the previous years.

She said Nigerians need to mitigate the impact of global warming by planting trees around their environment and avoid deforestation.

Lazarus Sule, a staff of National Remote Sensing, Jos, said that the rainfall confirmed the reality of climate change.

He, however, advised the residents, especially farmers, to get proper advice from weather experts on when to begin farming activities.

A geography teacher in Bukuru, Josiah Ndang, described the rainfall as a mere trace and not the onset of the rainy season. 

(NAN)