NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (July 28, 2020) — The following is a statement by Mr. Brian Dyer, Director of the Nevis Disaster Management Department (NDMD), with regards to the approaching tropical weather system in the Atlantic.

At 2 p.m. the centre of Potential Tropical Cyclone 9 was located near latitude 14.1 degrees north 54.8 degrees west or about 510 miles east south east of the Leeward Islands.

Maximum sustained winds are 40 miles per hour, movement towards the west at 23 miles per hour, Minimum Central Pressure 1007 millibars or 29.74 inches.

Rainfall expected: 3 to 6 inches and gusts can be experienced up to 50 miles per hour

The system is moving toward the west. That means it would pass to the south of Nevis on its current track, and at its closest point between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. tomorrow it would be about 20 or 25 miles to the south of Nevis.

Currently, the maximum winds extend outwards from the centre, 230 miles in the north-east quadrant. Because this storm is passing on the south of Nevis, Nevis would experience the bulk of the weather as we fall within the north-east quadrant of that storm.

We can expect strong winds up to 50 miles an hour with gusts even higher especially in rain showers and thunderstorms.

The rainfall again predicted is 3 to 6 inches. That is a lot of rainfall in a very short period of time so we can expect flooded streets, and our ghauts would be flowing with the rainfall.

I want to appeal to persons in low-lying areas and persons living in close proximity to our water courses and our problematic areas in lower Bath, Stoney Grove, Charlestown, Pond Hill, Ramsbury and Newcastle, those areas are prone to flooding. Please take early precaution.

Persons who would be needing to stock up on their supplies, please do so this evening and early tomorrow.

We will make some recommendations to the Nevis Island Administration Cabinet tomorrow morning with regards to the Public Service and how they operate tomorrow and into Thursday. Those recommendations would be made tomorrow morning when we do a further analysis of the storm.

Currently hurricane hunters are investigating the system so hopefully we should have probably a named storm or further updates on the progress of the storm, whether it increases in strength or reduces in strength but all indication is that the storm is increasing in strength and potency.

So again, please be on your guard. Your disaster plans should be up-to-date and ready to be executed. Clean your drains if you haven’t done so. Remove any low-lying branches from your homes or over your roofs, and ensure that you have your disaster evacuation plan in place, and look after your animals as well.