Local NewsNews Tracking Elsa: Worst yet to come and soon, as storm lashes Barbados by Sandy Deane 02/07/2021 written by Sandy Deane 02/07/2021 2 min read A+A- Reset Share FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail 211 Winds gusting up to 77 kph (48 mph) and bursts of heavy rain were intensifying across Barbados by 6 o’clock Friday morning with the worst to come over the next two hours from strong Tropical Storm Elsa, while Home Affairs Minister Wilfred Abrahams again appealed to citizens to protect themselves. In his latest update, Abrahams expressed grave concern about the approaching wind speeds. He said: “Of concern for us… are some bands that will be arriving around the same time as the centre of the system between 6:30 to 7:30 a.m., we are expecting a lot more wind. The wind is the major concern for us. “So, if you start to feel the effects, damage starts to happen to you or those around you please contact us at the DEM [ Department of Emergency} …that way we can put things in place to respond as soon as an all-clear is given or as soon as possible.” Director of the Department of Emergency Management Kerry Hinds reported that more people had heeded the call to seek refuge in shelters across the country. Shelter Warden Joy Adamson reported that 66 persons were in shelters. She said: “ At Hilda Skeene, we have one person, at Hillaby Turners Hall we had one person, but that person left after midnight… We have eight at Blackman and Gollop, 17 at Christ Church Foundation, and one at Cuthbert Moore.“At Combermere, we have five persons, at Harrison College we have five, Lester Vaughn three, Hillaby Seventh Day Adventist Church eight, Ellerton Wesleyan Holiness Church one, The Church of God Orange Hill four, Connell Town Pentecostal House of Prayer two, Six Roads Church of Christ three. “At the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Conference Centre we have four and at the Lodge School we have four persons, bringing a total of 66 persons currently now in shelters.” The officials urged Barbadians to stay indoors. As the barometer plummeted to 1007 millibars (29.74 inches), the centre of Tropical Storm was estimated to be 110 km (70 miles) east-southeast of Barbados but moving rapidly toward the west-northwest at 44 km/h (28 mph). The 5 a.m. weather advisory said the storm’s maximum wind speeds have risen to near 60 mph (95 km/h) with higher gusts. “Some additional strengthening is forecast over next 12 to 24 hours, followed by little change in strength,” the advisory said. Tropical-storm-force winds extend to a large radius 140 miles (220 km), engulfing not only Barbados but the Windward and Southern Leeward Islands, from Dominica south to St Vincent and the Grenadines. At 6 a.m, the Barbados Meteorological Services placed Dominica under a Tropical Storm warning. Rainfall accumulations of 3 to 6 inches with maximum amounts of 10 inches are forecast for Barbados and across the Windwards and Southern Leewards through much of Friday, according to met officials. The storm’s estimated minimum central pressure is 1001 mb (29.56 inches). Sandy Deane You may also like Youth programme sees major expansion 14/03/2025 Symmonds defends foreign missions; highlights key partnerships. 14/03/2025 ‘Clean up the baton,’ tackle rising crime’- Lane 14/03/2025
