SPI Monitor September 2013
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.
*Please note that from the December 2012 issue, information on any potential hot-spots or areas of concern will be added at the end of the discussion*
Discussion
September 2013
Normal to below normal conditions existed in the islands of the eastern Caribbean for September. Trinidad, Tobago, Barbados, Dominica, Antigua and St. Croix were normal; Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Maarten and Anguilla moderately dry; St. Vincent and St. Lucia abnormally dry. Guyana was normal in the west and abnormally wet in the east. Puerto Rico was abnormal to moderately wet, while the Dominican Republic ranged from moderately dry in the northwest to normal in the east. Jamaica was normal but Cayman Islands were moderately dry. Normal conditions dominated the Cuban landscape apart from in the extreme east and central areas that were abnormally dry and in the west that was abnormally wet. Apart from the extreme west that was abnormally wet, Belize rainfall was normal.
July 2013 to September 2013
Normal to below normal rainfall was experienced in the islands of the eastern Caribbean for the three month period. Trinidad, Tobago, Antigua and St. Maarten were moderately dry; Grenada and St. Vincent exceptionally dry; Barbados, St. Lucia, Dominica and St. Croix normal; and St. Kitts and Anguilla abnormally dry. Conditions in Guyana ranged from normal in the west to extremely wet in the east. Puerto Rico was exceptionally wet, but the Dominican Republic ranged from moderately dry in the extreme southwest to normal in the east. Jamaica was normal in the west and abnormally wet in the east, while the Cayman Islands were normal. The western portion of Cuba was normal to exceptionally wet, while the eastern portion ranged from abnormally wet to moderately dry. Conditions in Belize ranged from moderately dry in the south to moderately wet in the north.
April 2013 to September 2013
For the six month period, conditions were mixed across the eastern Caribbean and Guyana. Trinidad and St. Lucia were moderately wet; Tobago, St. Vincent, St. Kitts, St. Maarten and Anguilla normal; Grenada moderately dry; Barbados very wet; Dominica extremely wet; Antigua and St. Croix abnormally wet; and Guyana ranging from normal in the west to moderately wet in the east. Puerto Rico was exceptionally wet while totals in the Dominican Republic ranged from extremely dry in the southwest to very wet in the east. Jamaica and Cayman Islands were normal, while conditions in Cuba ranged from very wet in the west to exceptionally dry in the east. Rainfall in Belize ranged from moderately dry in the south to very wet in the north.
October 2012 to September 2013
Conditions in the eastern Caribbean and Guyana were mixed. Trinidad was normal to abnormally wet; Tobago, Barbados, St. Kitts, Anguilla and St. Croix normal; Grenada exceptionally dry, St. Vincent and St. Maarten abnormally dry; Dominica and Antigua abnormally wet; and Guyana abnormally wet in the northern extreme and normal elsewhere. Puerto Rico was extremely wet, while the Dominican Republic ranged from moderately dry in the southwest to very wet in the east. Jamaica was predominantly normal, but Cayman Islands were moderately dry. Rainfall in Cuba ranged from abnormally wet in the west central areas to severely dry in the east, while conditions in Belize ranged from moderately dry in the south to abnormally wet in the north.