There were indications
from weather forecasts that another named tropical weather system could form in
the Caribbean Sea as early as Thursday.
If that happens, the
system would be called ‘Richard’ and would be the 17th named storm of
the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season.
On Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center in Miami expected the system had a strong possibility - about 70 per cent - of becoming a tropical cyclone as it meandered about the western Caribbean.
The system was expected to dump several more inches of rain on Cayman over the next few days, whether or not it developed into a tropical cyclone.
Hazard Management Cayman Islands officials warned that the heavy rainfall could bring flooding to low-lying areas and urged residents and business owners to take all necessary precautions.
Between Monday and
Wednesday, some 3.85 inches of rainfall was measured in Savannah. Heavy rains
continued on Grand Cayman Wednesday and were expected to hit Jamaica as well.
There were too many
variables in the weather patterns at press time Wednesday to determine where the
system might move within the next 48 hours.
Steering currents were
relatively weak and wind shear striking the weather system was fairly high,
making it difficult to predict how or when the storm would develop.
Some forecast models
expected the system to head west over the weekend toward Mexico. Others
had it heading west-northwest toward the Yucatan Channel between
Cuba and Mexico –
possibly at hurricane strength.
Still others had the
system turning to the southwest, making landfall in Belize on
Monday.
Check
back to www.compasscayman.com for
more on this storm system
Latest
weather