Heat wave unsettles Zimbabweans

The heat wave that has hit the country since the beginning of the week has unsettled many Zimbabweans who are not used to such high temperatures. With temperatures soaring as high as 44 degrees Celsius in the Zambezi (River) Valley and recording an average of 35 degrees Celsius at most weather stations Wednesday, the country has experienced the hottest October since 1925. Harare recorded 36 degrees Celsius on Wednesday. Chiredzi in the southern parts of the country recorded 45 degrees Celsius Tuesday as health officials advised people to take a lot of water to prevent dehydration and be wary of such ailments as diarrhea, vomiting and headaches. Generally, temperatures in the hottest parts of the country such as Kariba in the Zambezi Valley go as high as 32 to 34 degrees Celsius while hovering in the late 20s in cooler areas. A pupil at a private school in Harare said colleagues who had previously not been keen to go for swimming lessons had all plunged into the school's swimming pool to cool themselves from the sweltering heat Wednesday afternoon. "Today it was so hot that even those who do not usually want to swim ended up in the pool," he said. A number of people are also carrying bottled water with them as they go about their chores in the city. Xavier Soko said he had to enter a clothing shop pretending to be interested in the merchandise so that he could cool himself off in the air-conditioned outlet. A resident working in the city center said the hot weather was also affecting productivity at work. "Some people are in foul mood and easily get irritated with their colleagues," he said. Weather experts, who have attributed the hot weather to a middle-level high pressure center that developed on Sunday, have warned that the current conditions will prevail till Sunday.