Havana: The Sahara dust cloud advances over the eastern half of Cuba, coming from Haiti, the Dominican Republic and the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a very high concentration of suspended particles, meteorologists from the country reported today.
As predicted, a predominant milky hue in the color of the sky will be evident (the typical intense blue almost disappears completely) and the observation of a dense haze, which limits long-distance visibility, is possible, Cubadebate publishes.
Specialists assure that it is concentrations not seen in the last 50 or 60 years.
Throughout the week it will travel west, crossing the western Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, and reaching the southeastern of the United States.
Experts indicate that these clouds are generated by sand and dust storms in the Sahara and Sahel desert, which can reach heights of three to seven kilometers.
Once emerged from the African continent, they advance westward under the flow of the trade winds, spreading through the Atlantic Ocean to reach the Caribbean Sea, Cuba, the southeastern United States, Mexico and Central America.
The arrival of dust from the Sahara desert to this geographical area will bring with it a decrease in rainfall and little chance of tropical wave formation in the Caribbean area.
The Cuban Meteorological Institute assures that it is a normal situation for the second fortnight of June, all July and the first fortnight of August, which is why historically few tropical cyclones in the Atlantic are reported.
However, these clouds are loaded with particulate material highly harmful to human health and also contain minerals such as iron, calcium, phosphorous, silicon and mercury, along with viruses, bacteria, fungi, pathogenic mites, staphylococci and persistent organic pollutants.
In the face of this meteorological event, health specialists insist on the implementation of measures such as the use of masks to go outside, protect water storage sources and drink plenty of liquids in order to prevent dehydration.