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Officially we are still in the hurricane season. Usually by this time the hurricane kits are packed away. Not so this year. It’s the end of October and still we must comb the weather channels and web sites to see what’s new on the horizon. We have completed the normal alphabet and are now on to Greek alphabet.
The hurricane season started 01st June. Since then the island has been suffering from continuous bad weather. Although we have so far been spared a direct hit we have felt the fury of several of these hurricanes. The heavy rainfalls from these systems have left the earth so waterlogged that even a drizzle can prove fatal at this time.
Follow up:
For the past two days the rains have fallen. Western Jamaica is once again under water. Montego Bay, St. James, Falmouth, Trelawny, Hanover as well as Negril, Westmoreland are experiencing flooding and land slippages.
The current rain is due to a stationary front close to Jamaica. However the forecast does not look good as the 23rd storm of the season also formed today. Tropical Storm Beta with 60mph winds moving slowly north at 3mph is already showing signs of developing. Once again even if Jamaica is spared a direct hit any amount of water will prove catastrophic.
The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) is already recommending evacuation for all persons living in flood prone areas. Shelters are being opened in anticipation of the impending floods. Many persons that were flooded out last week have still not recovered.
Yesterday a Tornado made landfall at Salt Marsh, Trelawny. Roofs were torn off, zinc fences were flattened, trees were uprooted and crops destroyed by the twister. This is the second report of a tornado in Jamaica in the last couple of weeks.
So here we go again, glued to the radios and television waiting to hear which direction the storm takes and how strong it is. Sitting in bumper to bumper traffic dodging water craters as the rain pours down. For some persons it’s much worst as they heist furniture’s and other belongings on blocks or leave their homes to the elements and pray for the rains to go away.
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