28 The following article is not an original CARICAD article; it comprises substantial excerpts from an article sourced from: https://www.barbadosweather.org/PDF_Uploads/ Can%20Barbados%20be%20Hit.pdf The article seeks to explain the reason why Barbados appears to escape strikes from major hurricanes and with long periods in between direct strikes. However the article makes the point that the historical record shows that Barbados has been hit many times by devastating hurricanes. We therefore support the efforts of the Government of Barbados, CDEMA and the Department of Disaster Management (DEM) in Barbados to prepare for storms and hurricanes and encourage residents and visitors to heed the information, advice, guidance and training being constantly provided. Please note that the article was written before the turn of the century. Hurricane Elsa struck Barbados on Friday July 2, 2021. The website from which the excerpts for the article were taken also expressed thanks to a former Director of the Barbados Meteorological Service Deighton Best and the Barbados Museum and Historical Society. — CARICAD, June 2022 A lways a near miss for Barbados, why do hurricanes always tend to veer off Barbados? Or do they? Some say it's divine providence, others attribute it to the island's geographical location, yet others believe there is a 50-year cycle and Barbados is due for another strike soon. What really is the truth? These are some of the questions which this article explores in light of near misses, forecasters' predictions and religious prophecies. In fact, hurricanes used Barbados for target practice in the last 300 years, but compared to the 1600s, the 1700s, and the 1800s, this century (20th) has been quiet. Between 1627, when Barbados was colonised, and 1899, 23 hurricanes directly affected Barbados, caused billions of dollars in damage (at today's prices), killed thousands, and destroyed the economy on more than one occasion. In the 1600s, four hurricanes devastated Barbados, in the 1700s five systems directly affected Barbados, two causing devastation, and in the 1800s there were 17 hurricanes. The majority of these systems went right over Barbados. Source: WW 2010, Department of Atmospheric Sciences. The University of Illinois at Urbana — Department of Atmospheric Sciences, with data from Colorado State/Tropical Prediction Center hosted by Unisys Weather Major Impacts says: This century (20th) there were five "impacts" including Hurricane Janet, a small but powerful system, the centre of which passed not far off the South Coast of Barbados in 1955 mainly impacting the southern part of Barbados. It killed 35 people, destroyed 8,100 homes and left 20,000 homeless. Hurricane Allen in 1980 was a big hurricane which passed north of Barbados destroying 35 homes and damaging more than 200, especially in St. Andrew. Edith in 1963 passed 50 miles north of Barbados, dumping seven to nine inches of rain on the island. On July 2, 1901 Tropical Storm #2 passed seven miles south of Barbados dumping more than 20 inches of rain in St. Peter, killing one man. This Continues on next page
29 Publizr Home