Our take on Hurricanes

So here we are (image from early today) deep in the middle of the Caribbean hurricane season and we have been closely observing and paying attention to the details of weather forecasts. We watch satellite images as heavy weather systems spawn into Tropical Storms when they leave the western most coast of Africa. Summer wind patterns in the Atlantic Ocean start them spinning and the spinning increases if the upper air wind patterns have less wind sheer (earth's atmosphere has several layers that move independently of each other). Then they travel across the Atlantic at about 15 miles per hour and head in different directions depending on other wind patterns there are at the time that might affect their track.

So we watch and wait. Our breathing becomes a bit more laboured when the NOAA site shows an elongated balloon with a tropical depression heading in our general direction. It changes from yellow to orange and then to red, and it is still targeting our little bit of paradise while inching closer each time we check – three times a day. The top two images are 1 day apart.

Ok, so we are now in the dreaded “cone” area. Any islander will know the angst of looking at a storm tracking site and seeing one’s little dot of a rock buried within that treacherous elongated orange or red balloon that represents a storm’s projected path across the Caribbean basin. Time to get busy. We have already published several posts on hurricane preparations so we won't repeat them here. Yes, we are ready...

We become even more anxious when the depression develops into a tropical storm warning and it might be spinning, albeit slowly. If it then further develops into hurricane status, the coloured balloon cones change into flaring hurricane tracks, dotted with forecast time of arrival. This image was published showing Hurricane Irma on August 30th.

Meanwhile outside, the weather is beautiful and those not watching the weather forecast are gleefully ignorant of the impending doom and are lounging at the beach with pink umbrella drinks...

As we watch each update, the hurricane seems to have a mind of its own and weaves a curvy / zig-zag track across the Atlantic, leaving the forecasting folks to revise the future track and continually revise warnings to those newly in its path. This image is Hurricane Irma on September 3. We hold our breath, the hurricane shifts a bit north, and now it is going to miss us. Though our hearts reach out to those now placed in it’s revised route, we are beyond relieved that we are no longer having to drag the mattress into the bathroom and huddle under it while the building shakes. Cheers!

We chose Grenada as one of our top three Caribbean destinations for many reasons, one reason being it scored well with regard to historical hurricane tracks. They typically pass by Grenada to the north. Yes, Grenada has been hit with a few rouge hurricanes (Cat 5 = 0, Cat 4 = 1, Cat 3= 2, Cat 2 = 0, Cat 1 = 2) since 1944 when NOAA records started being collected. Considering there are, on average, a dozen or so hurricanes in the Atlantic each year, Grenada has only felt 5 in the last 80+ years.

Depending on water temperature, hurricanes usually strengthen as they travel from east to north-west. This graph is Category 3 hurricanes. Grenada is fortunate to be far enough south in the Caribbean sea that the same storm has less of an impact in Grenada than it does once it moves past Grenada and heads west into the Caribbean sea.

A Category 1 hurricane might form from a Tropical Storm just as it passes over Grenada, and will then strengthen into a much more dangerous and powerful hurricane as it travels toward the Gulf of Mexico or north to Florida. Hurricane Harvey (which hit Houston this year) travelled across Grenada on August 17 as a light tropical storm (we got some heavy rain), and then on August 25 slammed into the Gulf of Mexico and the south coast of USA as a Category 4 hurricane.

The damage done by a hurricane can be devastating through high winds, extreme rain and by storm surge. The hurricane “lifts” sea water and carries it along its path and can drop salt water up to 40 feet deep (including fish) on coastal areas as it passes over. The more powerful the storm, the greater the storm surge. Everything gets flooded.

Even though a major hurricane in Grenada is slim, we chose a second floor apartment away from the beach and up a slight incline. On a quiet weather day, the floor of our apartment is about 50 feet above sea level. People who live at toe level elevation to the sea will have a different set of preparations including sand bags and lots of prayers...