The ember months — September, October, November and December — are finally here.

Every year, many Nigerians perceive the ember months to be synonymous with mysterious happenings.

Within these four months left, a fever, or perhaps some sort of anxiety, grips most Nigerians.

The ‘ember’ months are always the busiest on roads for many reasons and the air of festivity within these periods makes everyone ecstatic.

From the religious perspective, many people believe these dangers or tragic occurrences are caused by evil spirits associated with these months.

They argue the it is a season when prayers should be intensified to curtail the incidence of evil.

While this fear for the ‘Ember months’ seems to be a natural phenomenon, it is important that we also pay attention to the dangers that have now been associated with what is now termed “ember months”.

1. Fire Outbreak – Fire is one of the major causes of accidents during Ember months because the air becomes dryer, thus encouraging chain reaction of fire.

Ember months usually come with gradual subsiding of the rains and encroachment of the Harmattan haze.

These Harmattan hazes fuel fire outbreak in marketplaces, offices, worship centers, farms, bushes

2. Accidents – In Nigeria, the ember months are known as a period of hectic activity on roads.

People use this end of year period to engage in business and travel to visit loved ones living far away.

Further analysis revealed that the top five causes of road accidents are:

- Speed violation

- Wrongful overtaking

- Dangerous driving

- Tyre burst

- Brake failure.

Other factors that also cause road accidents during this period are: excessive speeding, overloading and impatient passengers making passive comments to the driver while driving.

Many drivers place their safety at risk by overloading their vehicles.

3. Kidnappings – Although insecurity and kidnappings are not new in Nigeria, they are always on the increase during the ember months.

Kidnapping has evolved into a lingering, pervasive security threat, fast-paced and multifaceted criminal enterprise.

It is now perpetrated by diverse armed groups and criminal gangs operating across the country.

Young and old have been victims; others have had the gruesome experience of losing loved ones to these kidnappers.

4. Robbery and other criminal activities – Some of the most common types of robberies experienced in Nigeria are home robberies, car robberies and bank robberies.

Today, armed robbery is not only one of the biggest threat in Nigeria, but also a social scourge

Robberies can occur almost at any time, but tend to occur more often in anticipated settings and at expected times.

All that is necessary is a motivated robber and an unwilling victim at the wrong place at the wrong time.

***

Source: The Nation