This morning I woke up to find Etienne had just returned from morning prayer and was about to switch the ceiling off.
"Are you not baking?!" I asked. It was as warm and humid as any other morning over the last few days and I just couldn't understand why Etienne would want to turn the fan off!
He then opened the curtain and invited me to look outside.
Everything had turned ORANGE.
I then began to smell the dust in the air and feel it going deep into my lungs. The dust had covered everything and was lingering in the air, creating a kind of fog that reminded me of the smog scenes I've only ever seen in pictures and videos of the Chinese capital.
Making my way into the living room, I realised there was a new layer of dust over everything that had been cleaned the day before. Everything in the bathroom was also covered in a layer of orange. It was like some aliens had invaded our town overnight and sprayed every single thing, big and small, with a choking, orange powder.
Thoughts of pneumonia and other lung diseases filled my head as I stepped outside, and yet I felt completely powerless to save my breathing apparatus from the evil menace filling the air.
The bike, which Etienne had used to go to morning prayer, looked like it had been abandoned months ago when we went to use it again an hour later to go to school.
Inside the classroom, it was hard to teach because we were all coughing incessantly and the kids at the back of the room couldn't read the board properly on account of the hazy air. Perhaps I should have cancelled the class but most of the other teachers seemed to be teaching so I didn't think I was allowed to skive!
When we got back home, I realised just how bad the visibility was when I noticed that I couldn't see the minarets of the central mosque from our staircase.
And the worst thing?
It won't be going away overnight. Normally these dust clouds rest for a few days before dispersing.
Please pray for everyone in Kandi, particularly that God will protect our health during these days of dust clouds.
"Are you not baking?!" I asked. It was as warm and humid as any other morning over the last few days and I just couldn't understand why Etienne would want to turn the fan off!
He then opened the curtain and invited me to look outside.
Everything had turned ORANGE.
I then began to smell the dust in the air and feel it going deep into my lungs. The dust had covered everything and was lingering in the air, creating a kind of fog that reminded me of the smog scenes I've only ever seen in pictures and videos of the Chinese capital.
Making my way into the living room, I realised there was a new layer of dust over everything that had been cleaned the day before. Everything in the bathroom was also covered in a layer of orange. It was like some aliens had invaded our town overnight and sprayed every single thing, big and small, with a choking, orange powder.
Thoughts of pneumonia and other lung diseases filled my head as I stepped outside, and yet I felt completely powerless to save my breathing apparatus from the evil menace filling the air.
The bike, which Etienne had used to go to morning prayer, looked like it had been abandoned months ago when we went to use it again an hour later to go to school.
Inside the classroom, it was hard to teach because we were all coughing incessantly and the kids at the back of the room couldn't read the board properly on account of the hazy air. Perhaps I should have cancelled the class but most of the other teachers seemed to be teaching so I didn't think I was allowed to skive!
When we got back home, I realised just how bad the visibility was when I noticed that I couldn't see the minarets of the central mosque from our staircase.
And the worst thing?
It won't be going away overnight. Normally these dust clouds rest for a few days before dispersing.
Please pray for everyone in Kandi, particularly that God will protect our health during these days of dust clouds.
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