SPI Monitor May 2019

May 2019

Rainfall in the islands of the eastern Caribbean was normal to below normal for the month of May, with the exception of Antigua, which was moderate to very wet and Guadeloupe which was normal to slightly wet. Trinidad, Tobago, and Martinique were normal to slightly dry; Grenada, St. Vincent, St. Lucia normal; Barbados and St. Maarten slightly dry; St. Kitts normal to moderately dry. Conditions in the Guianas were generally normal to above normal, ranging from extremely wet in north central areas of Guyana to slight to extremely dry in northern French Guiana. Curacao was slight to moderately dry.  Puerto Rico experienced normal to moderately wet conditions from northeastern to southwestern areas, with the exception of the extreme east which was slight to severely dry.  The Dominican Republic ranged from normal in the east to moderately dry in the west, whereas, Haiti, ranged from moderately dry in the east, to normal in north and south western areas. Jamaica was normal in the east, normal to slightly wet in the west, with central areas ranging from slight to moderately dry from north to south; but Grand Cayman was normal. Cuba was predominantly normal, with slight to moderately wet conditions in the western and eastern areas while Northern Bahamas was normal. In Belize, with the exception of the northern and western areas which ranged from slight to moderately dry, central to southern areas were normal to extremely wet.

March to May 2019

Mixed conditions were observed in the eastern Caribbean islands over the three month period. Trinidad was normal to severely dry, from northeast to southwest; Tobago normal; Grenada and St. Vincent slight to moderately wet;  Barbados and St. Lucia normal to moderately dry;  Martinique and Dominica slight to moderately dry; Guadeloupe normal to slightly wet; Antigua slightly wet, St. Kitts moderate to severely dry; and. St. Maarten extremely dry. In the Guianas, conditions ranged from slightly wet in northern Guyana to exceptionally dry in northern French Guiana, with Guyana being predominantly normal, and Suriname and French Guiana predominantly below normal. Curacao was normal. .Puerto Rico was predominantly normal, with the extreme southeastern area ranging from slight to moderately wet, whereas, the extreme north ranged from slightly dry in the west, to severely dry in the northeast. Hispaniola was predominantly normal, particularly over the Dominican Republic with the exception of the northwestern and southern tip that were slightly dry, and in the west, north and south that were slight to moderately dry. Jamaica ranged from slightly dry to normal from central to eastern areas, with western areas ranging from normal to extremely wet; but Grand Cayman was normal to slightly wet, from west to east. Cuba was predominantly normal, with slightly wet areas in the northeast, south and west, however slight to severely dry in the east, whilst Northern Bahamas ranged from slightly wet to slightly dry. Conditions in Belize ranged from slight to extremely dry in the north, slight to moderately dry in the west, with predominantly normal conditions elsewhere, except for a small area in the center which was slightly wet, and the south which ranged from slightly wet to very wet.

December 2018 to May 2019

For the six month period, rainfall in in the islands of the eastern Caribbean was normal to below normal. Trinidad ranged from moderately dry in the northeast to exceptionally dry in the southwest;  Tobago slight to moderately dry; Grenada, St. Vincent, Guadeloupe and Antigua normal; Barbados severe to extremely dry; St. Lucia moderately dry; . Martinique severely dry; and St Kitts slight to severely dry; and St Maarten exceptionally dry. Most of the Guianas was normal, but with slight to severely dry conditions in northern Guyana, slight to exceptionally dry in eastern Suriname and slight to exceptionally dry in western and the eastern French Guiana. Curacao was moderate to severely dry. Puerto Rico ranged from moderately wet to normal in the south, and slight to exceptionally dry in the north eastern areas. In Hispaniola, conditions ranged from normal in central and eastern parts and a portion of western Dominican Republic to severely dry, in southwestern Haiti. Jamaica was predominantly normal, with the exception of the western areas, which were slight to moderately wet, but Grand Cayman was slight to moderately wet from west to east. Most of the central areas of Cuba ranged from slight to very wet, with normal conditions in most western areas and in the extreme east. Northern Bahamas ranged from normal to moderately wet, whereas, conditions in Belize were predominantly dry, ranging from slight to severely dry in the east and west, with normal conditions in the south.

June 2018 to May 2019

Over the twelve month period, rainfall in the eastern Caribbean was normal to below normal, with the exception of Guadeloupe that was normal in the east and slightly wet in the west. Trinidad ranged from normal in the south to exceptionally wet in the northwest; Tobago slight to extremely dry, from east to west; Grenada slightly dry; Barbados moderate to extremely dry , St. Vincent and St. Kitts were slight to moderately dry; St. Lucia and St. Maarten severely dry; Martinique severe to extremely dry; Dominica normal to severely dry from north to south; Antigua normal to slightly dry. Conditions in the Guianas were mostly normal, but ranged from slightly wet in central and southwest Guyana and southeastern French Guiana to severely dry in northeast Guyana, the central Suriname/French Guiana border and northeast portions of French Guiana. Curacao was normal. Puerto Rico ranged from normal in the south to severely dry. Conditions in Hispaniola ranged from moderately dry over much of the northern half of the Dominican Republic exceptionally dry in the west and south. Jamaica was mostly normal, except for areas in the east and southeast which were slight to extremely dry and in the northwest that was slight to moderately dry, but Grand Cayman was slightly dry. In Cuba, conditions in the extreme east ranged from slight to exceptionally dry, whereas, east central and extreme western areas were normal, with some areas in west central ranging from slight to moderately dry. Northern Bahamas ranged from normal to slightly dry, whereas in Belize, conditions ranged from normal in the south to moderately dry in the north, with extremely dry areas in the east.

June 2017 to May 2019