SPI Monitor August 2020

August 2020

Mixed conditions prevailed throughout the islands of the eastern Caribbean during the month of August. Trinidad ranged from moderately dry in the southeast to exceptionally wet in the northwest; Tobago very to moderately wet; Grenada, Saint Lucia, Martinique, Antigua, St Maarten, Anguilla, normal; Barbados slight to moderately wet; St Vincent moderately dry in the south to normal in the north; Dominica slightly dry to normal; Guadeloupe normal to moderately dry; St Kitts normal to slightly wet; St Croix slightly wet; St Thomas normal to slightly dry. In the Guianas, conditions ranged from severely dry in north-eastern French Guiana to very wet on the western border of Guyana and northern border of Suriname and French Guiana. Aruba slightly wet and Curacao normal. Puerto Rico ranged from severely dry in the west to normal on the southeastern border. Hispaniola was predominantly normal ranging from slightly wet on the central and southern border to slightly dry in southeast central Dominican Republic. Jamaica ranged from moderately wet in the northwest and slightly wet in the east to normal in central areas. Grand Cayman was moderately wet. Cuba ranged from moderately wet in the extreme west and east to extremely dry in east central areas. Northern Bahamas ranged from normal to extremely wet and Belize ranged from extremely dry in the southeast to slightly wet in the northwest.

June to August 2020

Over the three month period, conditions in the eastern Caribbean were mixed. Trinidad , St Vincent,  St Kitts , St Croix, St Maarten, Anguilla and St Thomas normal; Tobago normal to moderately dry; Grenada normal to slightly dry; Barbados normal to moderately wet south to north; Saint Lucia and Martinique normal to severely dry; Dominica severe to slightly dry south to north;  Guadeloupe normal to extremely dry; Antigua normal to slightly wet. In the Guianas conditions ranged from moderately wet in  western , south western Guyana ,northern Guyana and Suriname border and north eastern French Guiana to very wet in central Suriname and slightly dry in northern Guyana. Aruba and Curacao were slightly wet. Puerto Rico ranged from normal in the southeast to extremely wet in the northwest.  Hispaniola was predominantly normal ranging from slightly wet on the central border to slightly dry in the extreme southwest of Haiti and southeastern areas of the Dominican Republic.  Jamaica was predominantly normal with the extreme western sections ranging to moderately wet. Grand Cayman was normal to slightly wet. Cuba ranged from moderately wet in western and west central areas to slightly dry in the extreme east. Northern Bahamas ranged from moderately wet to normal and Belize ranged from severely dry in the south and eastern areas to normal in the west, southeast and northern areas.

March to August 2020

Conditions in the eastern Caribbean were normal to below normal during the six month period. Trinidad ranged from slightly dry in the southeast to moderately dry in the northwest, and normal in the extreme northeast; Tobago normal to extremely dry; Grenada, , St Kitts, St Maarten and Anguilla slightly dry; St Vincent  slight to moderately dry ; Barbados,  Antigua, St Croix and St Thomas normal; Saint Lucia slight to exceptionally dry; Martinique moderate to severely dry; Dominica extreme to severely dry; Guadeloupe ranged from slight to exceptionally dry from west to east with the exception of the extreme northwest which was normal. In The Guiana’s conditions were predominantly normal, ranging from severely dry in northern Guyana , southern Suriname /French Guiana border, to exceptionally wet in northeastern French Guiana. Aruba and Curacao were normal. In Puerto Rico, conditions ranged from slightly dry in the southeast to moderately wet in the extreme northwest.  Hispaniola ranged from normal in northern and north central areas to severely dry in south western Haiti and exceptionally dry in a small area in the south of the Dominican Republic. Jamaica was predominantly normal ranging from moderately dry in the southwest to slightly wet in the northwest. Grand Cayman was normal. Cuba ranged from very wet in the extreme west to extremely dry in the east. Northern Bahamas ranged from slight to exceptionally wet and Belize was predominantly normal ranging to moderately dry in the southwest and northeast.

September 2019 to August 2020

Over the twelve month period, conditions in the eastern Caribbean were normal to below normal. Trinidad ranged from severely dry in the west to normal in the extreme northeast; Tobago normal to moderately dry; Grenada slight to moderately dry; Barbados exceptional to slightly dry; St Vincent extreme to exceptionally dry; Saint Lucia exceptionally dry; Martinique moderate to severely dry; Dominica moderately dry; Guadeloupe slight to exceptionally dry west to east; Antigua and St Kitts normal; St Maarten and Anguilla slightly dry; St Croix severely dry; St Thomas slightly dry to normal. In the Guiana’s conditions were predominantly normal ranging from normal to extremely dry in northern Guyana, to moderately wet in northeastern French Guiana and to exceptionally dry in northwestern French Guiana. Aruba ranged from normal to slightly dry and Curacao slightly dry. Puerto Rico ranged from extremely dry in the southwest to very wet in the northeast. Hispaniola ranged from exceptionally dry in central Dominican Republic to normal in the west and extreme east. Jamaica was predominantly normal with slightly dry conditions on the southwestern border. Grand Cayman was extremely dry. Cuba ranged from moderately wet in the extreme west and moderately dry in west central areas to normal in central and eastern areas. Northern Bahamas ranged from very wet to extremely dry. Belize ranged from normal in central areas to moderately dry in the south and to extremely dry in the northeast.

September 2018 to August 2020

Conditions were normal to below normal throughout the eastern Caribbean over the two year period. Trinidad and Martinique ranged from moderate to exceptionally dry; Tobago and Dominica slight to extremely dry; Grenada moderately dry; Barbados exceptional to severely dry south to north; St Vincent severe to extremely dry; saint Lucia exceptionally dry; Guadeloupe normal to exceptionally dry west to east; Antigua normal; St Kitts normal to slightly dry; St Maarten slightly dry; Anguilla slight to moderately dry; St Croix severely dry; St Thomas slightly dry to normal south to north. Conditions in the Guiana’s ranged from exceptionally wet in central Guyana to exceptionally dry in northern Guyana, northwest French Guiana and eastern Suriname. Aruba and Curacao were moderately dry. Puerto Rico ranged from severely dry in the extreme southwest to normal in the east. Hispaniola ranged from moderately dry in central areas to exceptionally dry in the west of Haiti and eastern Dominican Republic. Jamaica was predominantly normal ranging to extremely dry in the east. Grand Cayman was severe to moderately dry west to east. Cuba was moderately wet in the west to exceptionally dry in the east. Northern Bahamas ranged from extremely wet to extremely dry and Belize ranged from moderate to exceptionally dry south to north.

Disclaimer

The information contained herein is provided with the understanding that The Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology makes no warranties, either expressed or implied, concerning the accuracy, completeness, reliability, or suitability of the Outlook. The information may be used freely by the public with appropriate acknowledgement of its source, but shall not be modified in content and then presented as original material.