Global Warming Driving Some Kenyans Nocturnal
Days in northern Kenya have become so hot under climate change that some residents have turned nocturnal to escape the heat.
Nightfall has become something to celebrate in Atheley and other villages, where afternoon readings in excess of 104 degrees Fahrenheit became common for the first time this year.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation reports this has made farming, going to school and other daily activities a struggle.
Villagers now take refuge in circular huts, waiting for sunset before venturing outside.
Students attend classes between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., then return at dawn for an additional two-hour session.
New solar lighting technology, which charges up during the broiling daylight hours, has allowed these remote communities to adapt to nocturnal life.
“I have lived in Atheley for 50 years and I have never witnessed such weather conditions, which have turned us into prisoners, forcing us to work at night when we are supposed to rest before another grueling day of trekking for water and herding livestock," village elder Abey told freelance journalist Abjata Khalif.
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