Thursday 2 August 2012

August, come it must

Living in the Caribbean has its glory days, but some of those days can also be, not so glorious.
Barbados, as well as most of the other Caribbean islands are situated within the hurricane belt.
The island chain is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, and the Caribbean Sea on the west.
The Atlantic Hurricane season runs from June 1st - November 30th.
In school we were taught that old time Mariner's ditty:
June - too soon
July  - stand by
August  -  come it must 
September - remember
October  - all over

I know what you're saying to yourself....she just said that the season runs from June to November, yet there's nothing for November in the ditty. Well folks, that's a great deduction on your part, and here's why.
Back in the old days, the hurricane season did run from June to October, but since we have been messing with our planet's structure and changed the entire worldwide weather pattern (what pattern??), we have been experiencing hurricanes in November as well.
I'm sure someone will come up with suitable words to make the ditty right again. (*)

Most weather systems come off the African coast, travel across the Atlantic gathering momentum, and start out as tropical depressions, which can further strengthen and become tropical storms, which in turn can become a full force hurricane.

The National Hurricane Centre in Florida tracks and predicts hurricanes for the area.
At this time of the year, keeping up with the weather forecast is a daily ritual in the island household. 



Early morning view from my patio
The Central Bank of Barbados building in the middle of photo

Today, the weather bulletin has informed us that a Tropical Depression (#5) is moving quickly towards the west, and it has a chance of becoming better organized, therefore tropical storm conditions are possible.
Preparations need to be made, in the eventuality that it strengthens into something  more forceful like a storm. If it becomes a storm, it will be Tropical Storm Ernesto.


This of course means that I will spend today putting away garden items, checking limbs and branches, maybe a quick hop up the ladder to inspect the roof, filling my tank with gas and a quick trip to the supermarket and the hardware store to restock my safety hurricane items.

August, come it must.

(*) Actually to update the ditty,  I like,     November  - what a bummer

4 comments:

  1. Hi Virginia,
    thanks for commenting on my blog. I remember when we were sailing in the Caribbean - always keeping a close eye on the weather. I hope this storm doesn't amount to anything much - it sounds as though you are prepared though which is good thing.

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  2. I do hope that you are still ok as I write this. I've been watching the weather reports and see that a couple of hours ago the storm was moving towards you. I'll hope for good news in the morning..

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  3. Hi africanaussie, thanks for stopping by.
    It's no fun sailing the Caribbean at this time of the year. The weather is so unpredictable, it can be quite scary for folks who are not accustomed to such weather systems.
    In my book, preparation is always the key.

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  4. Hi GB, it's okay, we have been spared.

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