Hurricane Maria leaves trail of misery
Hurricane Maria 5am Friday, 22 Sept
(CNS): The Turks and Caicos Islands, still literally picking up the pieces from Hurricane Irma, is currently suffering hurricane conditions yet again as the eye of Maria, now a category 3 storm, skims the north shore of the islands. Yesterday Maria ripped across Puerto Rico, killing at least 13 people. The island is still experiencing flash flooding and power outages, and reports indicate that it may be weeks or months before widespread restoration of the island’s power grid.
Across the region the death toll attributed to Maria so far is 30, but that is expected to rise. At least 15 died in Dominica, and 20 are still missing after the storm swept through on Monday morning, 18 September, as a category 5 hurricane. Some 90% of the structures on the island are reported to be damaged or destroyed.
Maria then impacted St Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda on 19 September and the Virgin Islands on the 19 and 20 September. The eye of the hurricane just missed the US Virgin Island of St Croix but the island nevertheless suffered widespread damage.
Dominica deals with the aftermath of Hurricane Maria
The British Virgin Islands, which were devastated by Hurricane Irma, escaped a direct hit and Governor Gus Jaspert said fresh damage was relatively low. The HMS Ocean is scheduled to reach the BVI today, loaded with 60 tonnes of aid, including building materials, more than 5,000 hygiene kits, 500,000 water purification tablets and 10,000 buckets.
The ship also carries a fleet of helicopters as well as military personnel to help with recovery operations in the British Overseas Territories.
However, as Jeff Masters at Weather Underground points out, the peak part of hurricane season lasts through mid-October. He said that in a typical season, there would be at least two more named storms, including one hurricane, during the first three weeks of October, and perhaps another hurricane before the season ends on 30 November.
“This year looks primed to be more active than usual in October and November, as a La Niña-like pattern — with cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures already present in the eastern tropical Pacific — may help keep wind shear in the tropical Atlantic below average,” Masters said. “In particular, the Western Caribbean will be an area we need to watch, as lower-than-average surface pressures are expected there during the first week of October.”
Category: Caribbean, Science & Nature, Weather, World News
Maybe dart can start help rebuilding over there, that would be nice!
Anonymous 8 32am , he can’t and won’t because he doesn’t have status of those Islands and can’t make more millions , so no help for them from him .
Climate change is a thing.
imagine what may happen next year
Imagine what could happen this year.
goving is receiving?
I give and receive.
That photo of all the wood in the street is heart breaking to really think about what the rest of Island is like would be painful. I hope that everyone is safe and alive . Wish all the victims a speedy recovery .
build concrete sructures…with concrete roofs.. and if possible comcrete doirs y windows on hinges….i plan on making a bunker on mynproperty to hide my solar panels etc…it is inevitable. caman will get hit again…
Good for you. Hurricane straps do work on framed buildings. External straps do better a youtube video claims. But you are right- bermuda house”s walls are foot thick. Why do you have to hide solar panels?
Agreed, my house design calls for the array to be plug and play removable and storable in the event of inclement catastrophic weather conditions. Straight up common sense.
With great sympathy to those afflicted by recent hurricanes, please forgive the pragmatic follow-up question: do we have any indication from the RCIPS on when their deployed staff will be returning to Cayman to handle the regular investigative case load that has been suspended in their absence? Are they going to swap out the first expeditionary force for a second one, or re-assign those pending criminal files so that charges and arrests can be laid against Cayman Islands criminals currently roaming free?
Great question, but why don’t you direct it to correct the persons, who are the only ones qualified to answer; the Commissioner of Police and his staff.
Those plans are not yet in place.
Sometimes others need us more than we need us. in the whole scheme of things, this is a blip. Now stop worrying about your own petty needs and think big picture, if you can that is.