Severe weather alert issued as rain pounds Cayman
Severe Weather hits Grand Cayman
(CNS): The National Weather Service has issued a severe weather alert in the face of flooding in North Side, George Town and Bodden Town due to a localized weather system that has dumped what the premier said was more than ten inches of rain on Cayman since yesterday. Alden McLaughlin told Finance Committee that government resources were being deployed across the island to assist with the growing problem of flooding.The Fire Service and RCIPS have already responded to affected homes and the North Side Shelter, and the Red Cross Shelter on Huldah Avenue in George Town will officially open at noon to assist people whose homes are flooded. Shelter Managers are asked to be on standby, ready to be called up for duty if necessary.
Police said that Anthony Drive in George Town is impassable, with flood waters in areas and motorist are advised to use alternate routes. Yeats Street and Sitwell Streets in Belford Estates, Bodden Town, have also reported flooding and areas of Hurst Road, North Sound Estates and Shamrock Road near the Lime Exchange is affected.
“Reports of stalled vehicles have been received in George Town and motorist in low profile vehicles are discouraged from driving through flooded roads, simply turn around and try another road that is safer,” police said.
The emergency services in North Side are responding to reports of flooding on the Rum Point Road, where at least four homes have been flooded. Residents there are being evacuated and motorists are asked to stay off the roads unless it is necessary.
The National Weather Service said the heavy rain is down to an interaction between a surface trough over the western Caribbean and an upper level trough over the Gulf Mexico, and over the past 24 hour period this has produced rainfall accumulations in excess of 5 inches, as measured at the Owen Roberts Airport. These figures more than doubled the forecast estimates and has led to widespread flooding across the Cayman Islands, with higher figures concentrated over certain parts of Grand Cayman.
The latest forecast information indicates rainfall of more than two inches over the next 24 hour period and the weather could continue for another two to three days. Officials from the weather service also disagreed with the figures released by the premier stating that only five inches of rainfall had been measured by Wednesday morning at Owen Roberts International Airport.
However, despite the discrepancies with scientific measurements a whole lot of rain was falling across Cayman and forecasters said there was more to come.
“This will add to the already flooded areas and may begin spreading to adjacent areas,” weather experts warned. “Residents should take precautions to prevent flooding … and seek alternative shelter arrangements if their house is flooded.”
Hazard Management Cayman Islands has informational resources about flooding on the website Cayman Prepared or people can stop by HMCI in the Government Administration Building if they do not have access to a computer or the internet. In the meantime residents are asked to preserve property by raising furniture and appliances up on concrete blocks and to unplug all appliances. Motorists are also being warned to exercise extreme caution on the roads due the accumulation of water.
For the latest weather advisory go to www.weather.gov.ky
Category: Local News, Medical Health, Police, Science & Nature
The football gods are unhappy…
I am puzzled. Looking at the Doppler radar screens on the Cayman Weather Service website it seems we are now out of the rainbelt, yet they forecast heavy rain through Saturday?.
Where I am in George Town it rained all Monday night, all day Tuesday, all Tuesday night and all this morning, flooding everywhere, and finally at 10.30am today the National Weather Service issues a severe weather alert. Were they asleep or did they forget to look out their windows and ignore their Doppler radar. I hope things improve for the rest of the hurricane season.
Need to spend money on infrastructure.
When the island took off too many pocketed the fast money without thought for the future.
Sad!
Alden is now the weather sage of Cayman. Ivan synopsis from 2004 , now the local thunderstorm guru . More to come in the upcoming rain & storm season.
Memo to the NWS: just because you only look at the gage at the airport doesn’t mean it’s not raining more than that somewhere else. Almost all of the numerous other local rain gauges are much more than 5″. Savannah was over11″.
Since the government has not made the slightest preparations, we going all have to go back to building our houses on stilts, like the old people.
gov website says we have 70% chance of rain today………….zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
If you continue to cut down the mangroves and fill in the wetlands so you can build on them, then you will continue to have flooding no matter how many disposal wells you drill. Cause and effect, folks.
Spot on. The idiots believe once they destroy it and build on it the tourists and investors will come. Now which investor would purchase in cayman when it floods after a day of rain? No where for the water to go. Even if you have storm wells!!!!
And still we have our idiots on the road driving through deep puddles at 50mph or more and weaving at high speed in and out of traffic on the Spotts Straight
It is a mystery why no previous administration has taken the opportunity to funnel some serious funding to a Dutch consultancy with experience in managing sea level coastal land.
I love to see those nitwits who have lowered the suspension of their ‘super cars’ – that are now stalled in the middle of the flooded roads…
Some people just drive small cars as they are economical. The idiots are the people who slow down or stop in the deep puddle, so you have to stop and end op stalling. If you are driving through water keep the gas peddle down at a steady rate, and the water won’t go up your exhaust.
And then there was the Hummer than decided to drive my side of the road to avoid a puddle and almost hit me head on. You are driving a Hummer for >>> sake and your scared of puddles?
The flooding on Shamrock Road between Bodden Town and Countryside was so bad at 11 am we had to turn around and abort trip to George Town. “Take another route” is obviously impossible.
and our rain gauge at Bodden Town home showed 8 inches between 7 am and noon today, added to five inches since yesterday noon. This is MUCH worse than indicated by NWS!
NRA needs to get out on the road and see what is happening, drill more storm drains and clear the current ones, everybody on west bay road is driving in the middle lane down to treasure island. Do something…
Got to give it to Alden on this one, like he said it’s impossible to predict the weather.
#WeatherAlchemy