Residents across several communities in Lagos have decried the intense heatwave, erratic electricity supply and fuel price increase describing the situation as unbearable and harmful to their health and daily living.
Many residents who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria in separate interviews in Lagos said the rising temperatures had made daily activities difficult, especially with limited access to electricity needed to power cooling devices.
They lamented that they were spending a lot on fuel to power their generators.
Tomiwa Ajayi, a resident of Ijaye, Agege, said coping with the heat had become extremely difficult due to irregular electricity supply in her area.
“The heatwave has been very difficult to cope with in my area because the temperature is extremely high during the day.
“Unfortunately, electricity is not stable here. We usually have power for only about eight hours a day, and most of the time it goes off during the daytime when the heat is at its peak.
“Sometimes the electricity only comes back late at night or around midnight,” she said.
Ajayi added that residents were forced to rely on simple measures such as opening windows and drinking water to manage the heat.
“Because of this, it is hard to use fans or other cooling devices during the hottest periods, so many people rely on opening windows, staying in shaded areas and drinking plenty of water to manage the heat,” she said.
Similarly, Idara Obong, a resident of Ogba, said the heat had become overwhelming and electricity supply remained unstable.
“The heat waves are very high. How I cope is that I lie on tiles when sleeping, especially in the afternoon.
“I open the windows for fresh air and take enough water to avoid dehydration.
“Light is not really stable, sometimes it goes off for about one to two hours at intervals,” Obong said.
Bisola Adeyemo, a content creator living in Oke-Ira,Ogba, said the heat was also affecting her skin and daily comfort.
“The heat in my area is what I can’t even describe. It has negative effects on my skin and I noticed my skin gets darker.
“But I make sure I use sunshade glasses before going out and apply sunburn cream on my face to reduce the effects of the hot sun,” she said.
Adeyemo said she relied heavily on hydration to stay healthy during the hot weather.
“I drink enough water daily, at least eight sachets of water every day and shower regularly to manage the heat,” she said.
Joel Ogwu, a trader and resident of Bucknor, described the heat as extremely harsh and uncomfortable.
“Recently, it has been really, really hot. When I say really hot, it is biting the skin. One cannot stay outside because it is really unbearable.
“But in my area there is light sometimes, and that helps to make the heat less troublesome for us,” she said.
Ese Brume, a civil servant living in Lekki, also lamented the situation, noting that lack of stable electricity worsened the experience.
“It has been very hot, no doubt. We are all feeling the heat and there is no constant electricity supply as well.
“For the heat, most of us know we need to hydrate. I take lots of water and we also use rechargeable fans to cool ourselves down,” she said.
Brume urged the government to address the persistent power challenges affecting citizens.
“Electricity supply has always been the challenge in this nation. Government should give us constant supply. They know what to do but are not doing it,” she said.
Samuel Igbokwe, a businessman and resident of Okota, said many communities had experienced severe electricity shortages in recent days.
“Within the last five days, it has been extremely terrible. There has been very deficient power and some areas have not had power at all, not even a blink, within five days,” he said.
He said that residents had previously protested the situation.
“Some weeks ago, the Community Development Association went to NEPA office carrying placards to complain. It has been terrible.
