Residents cautioned against flooding, high temps

onditions conducive to unusual bouts of lightning, thunderstorms and heavy showers triggered a flood watch by weather officials as rainfall dumped up to two inches of water in some parts of the island on Monday.
Meteorologist Cherise Brathwaite said the weather activity, which started overnight, mainly impacted parts of St Michael, St George and St James.

 

She warned Barbadians to be vigilant regarding weather developments which could change for the worse overnight and into Tuesday.

 

“We have a flood watch in effect tonight, and the concern is that with the rainfall we have had over the last few days, that any additional rainfall we get could potentially lead to flooding. So that is the rationale behind issuing the watch for tonight. In terms of tomorrow now, we do expect the wind speeds to remain relatively light. That in combination with basic heating would result in a few localised showers across some districts while other districts might remain hotter than comfortable,” Brathwaite told Barbados TODAY.

 

“In terms of the shower activity, right now we are thinking it would be western, central western and north western districts like St George, St James, St Peter that could get shower activity tomorrow. But we just want people to keep listening to the forecast, because conditions could change.”

 

The forecaster also pointed out that temperatures on Tuesday could reach about 32 degrees Celsius, and with the wind speeds being light, it will feel hotter than what the automatic weather stations would have recorded.
She also noted that the Met Office was currently monitoring two waves in the Atlantic.

 

Meanwhile, the August edition of the Barbados Meteorological Service (BMS) Climate Outlook newsletter has predicted rainfall accumulations across Barbados to be near to above average for the rest of the wet season.

 

“The model continues to predict tropical cyclones moving across the tropical Atlantic, and it remains likely that during this time, rainfall across Barbados will result from intense rainfall events associated with the passage of these cyclones. For September in particular, model guidance indicates an increased likelihood for localised rainfall across the northern portion of the island,” it stated.

 

“Model guidance also suggests that the transition into the dry season will be wet, with above-average rainfall forecast for December. These events will result in flash flooding, and residents and visitors to the island are urged to remain updated with the latest daily weather and seasonal rainfall forecasts.”

 

Model forecasts continue to project above-normal minimum, maximum and mean temperatures.

 

“Daytime temperatures are now expected to peak between 30 degrees Celsius and 32 degrees Celsius across rural districts, while urban, coastal and southwestern districts are expected to peak between 32 degrees Celsius and 35 degrees Celsius at least until October,” the BMS stated.

 

A transition into the cooler months should result in decreased instances for heat stress. Daytime temperatures should peak between 29 degrees Celsius and 31 degrees Celsius and between 28 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius from November and January, respectively, it added.

 

Despite the high temperatures, the BMS experimental WRF model indicates rainfall accumulations across Barbados to be near to above average for the rest of the wet season and there is therefore no concern there will be agricultural or hydrological drought.

 

However, members of the public are urged to take responsibility and continue to conserve water, regardless of the drought alert level.