PEOPLE with respiratory disorders and allergies have been urged to remain indoors or wear surgical masks amid unsettled weather and rising dust clouds.
Thick orange dust haze covered many parts of the country yesterday, with weathermen forecasting strong winds with thundery showers continuing until Wednesday.
Bahrainis and residents with asthma and allergies were the most vulnerable yesterday as increased air pollution and breathing difficulties were the result of rising sand that suddenly swept the country at around 1.30pm.
However, flights at Bahrain International Airport were not affected by the turbulent weather and remained on schedule, sources told the GDN.
An influx of people visiting hospitals and health centres due to the unsettled weather has been predicted, with family physician Dr Fatin Al Banna warning patients with asthma and other respiratory conditions to avoid being outdoors during this week’s extreme weather conditions.
“High levels of dust can irritate the lungs and cause an asthma flare-up,” she told the GDN.
“Dust storms bring increased air pollution which causes breathing difficulties in people with asthma by irritating the lungs, and the longer you are exposed the greater chance of symptoms.”
Dr Al Banna, who works at the A’ali Health Centre, said children and the elderly were most at risk of breathing difficulties with symptoms lingering on for days after exposure to dust.
She advised patients with respiratory illnesses to remain indoors and keep doors, windows and vents closed while ensuring they remained in air-conditioned rooms.
She also urged people covering their mouth and nose to use a wet cloth that would act as a humidifier to avoid inhaling the dust.
“If people with asthma or allergies absolutely have to leave the house they must ensure to carry their inhaler with them at all times and wear a mask to avoid inhaling dust and allergens,” she added.
“People with asthma are also exposed to skin allergies such as eczema, so moisturising and hydration is crucial.”
Meanwhile, 23-year-old Abdullah Ebrahim, who suffers from asthma and has dust and pollen allergies, said hospital visits were almost a sure thing when the weather turned dusty.
“When it gets dusty and I am exposed to the dust, my throat starts to tighten, my eyes start to itch and I start sneezing uncontrollably,” he said.
“I also start hyperventilating and have difficulty breathing normally and this weather limits my working ability as I need to be active outside the office space.
“I avoid going outside at all costs to avoid a severe allergic reaction to the dusty weather, and although I can wear a mask I still suffer.”
Another Bahraini man, Abdullah Al Ali, 33, said he had to stay indoors at the slightest hint of dusty weather because of his sinusitis, which is an inflammation in the sinuses, the hollow air spaces within the bones surrounding the nose.
“As soon as I see dust in the air I go indoors because I suffer greatly in this turbulent weather,” he explained.
Thundery
“My eyes swell up and I get severe headaches and I can’t even go to work, and I need to visit the hospital immediately because I have a severe allergy to this kind of weather.
“My sinuses immediately flare up and I need medical care.”
A five-day weather forecast by the Meteorological Directorate has predicted unsettled weather today with scattered rain showers becoming thundery at times.
Scattered rain is predicted to continue until Wednesday with maximum humidity reaching 85 per cent until Friday and temperatures possibly dropping to 19C today and reaching a maximum of 29C on Friday.
reem@gdn.com.bh
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