Abrahams urges vigilance as weather gets more unpredictable

Minister of Home Affairs and Information, Wilfred Abrahams, is again imploring Barbadians not to let their guards down and be prepared for extreme weather and other events.

Recalling the impacts of a recent freak storm, the minister said warnings were becoming shorter in the face of more volatile weather systems.

Members of the Barbados Meteorological Services attended the church service.

As he addressed the congregation at the St Bartholomew’s Church, Charnocks, Christ Church on Sunday to observe World Meteorological Day, Minister Abrahams noted challenges in providing early warnings.

“It is not that sometimes you get it wrong, but that sometimes you have to make a judgement call as to how early you can give the warning.”

He explained that the goal remains to create a system where critical information is provided as quickly as possible, enabling Barbadians to make the decisions that could potentially save their lives and protect their property.

Barbados was reportedly among the first 31 countries selected to implement the Early Warnings for All Initiative launched in 2022. Focusing on the second pillar, which addresses detection, observation, monitoring, analysis, and forecasting, Abrahams said, “It has been the aim of the BMS (Barbados Meteorological Services) to continue its rigorous push towards enhancing early warning services for Barbados.”

He explained that the BMS has rapidly expanded its observing capacity through the use of Unmanned Surface Vessels, weather buoys, a dense Automatic Weather System network, and aerial drones, which can provide vital information on systems east of the island that have the potential to develop.

The minister said extensive work was also being done by the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, the Department of Emergency Management, and the Barbados Fire Service, along with national and regional bodies. (STT)