If you live in Benin City, you might have noticed something peculiar about the rain fall in recent times.
No, I’m neither talking about the frequency nor the decree at which it rains. I am talking about something that is sort of new and strange to some of us.
Let me skip the suspense. Have you noticed the colour of the last 2 or 3 rain falls in some parts of the city?
If you have, I bet you thought it was caused by either the roof or the container ( drum, bucket, bowl, plates) that received the rain.
What if I tell you that non of these is responsible for the blackened rain. it’s not even a sign of end time as some religious faithfuls have proclaimed.
Black rain is rain blackened by gathering in its fall particles of smoke, black fungus spores, or atmospheric dust”. It is a rain that is exceptionally dark, dense, or dirty.
In an article written by Odiri Ese of the Federal University of Otuoke, the kind or rain or maybe even worse than this fell in Otuoke in the early hours of October 20th, 2021.
The rain which did not last up to 30 minutes ended up leaving residents of Otuoke with questions.
Just as the people of Otuoke asked out of curiosity the cause of the darkened rain, some people within the Benin metropolis have also asked.
Although this is not like the black rain that fell after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which has been generally believed to contain radioactive materials. The feeling is that, there is something cynical about it.
To be on a safer side, do not drink the water, do not cook with it, if you must bath with it, ensure it is heated.