My Barbados Blog

Since the island of Barbados was not affected by Hurricane Dean, our updates on the rest of the Caribbean will be continually posted in our Caribbean Travel Blog.

We are in contact with Jamaican tourism officials, hotels and travel suppliers, and will post information as we receive it. Currently the Southern coast of Jamaica, along with the capital city of Kingston are the two most affected areas.

See updates - The Caribbean is Open for Business

Hurricane Dean Update - Another Tropical System Forming

More updates on damage in Jamaica will be reported in our Caribbean Travel Blog as we get information, or you can go to http://go-jamaica.com/blog/

Hurricane Dean is headed west towards the Yucatan, still packing Category 4 winds, with the potential to add even more punch.

Dean is over waters with some of the highest heat content anywhere in the Atlantic, and could well take advantage of this energy source and become a Category 5 hurricane today.

Landfall will occur late tonight or early Tuesday morning over the Yucatan Peninsula. Landfall should occur over 100 miles south of Cozumel, so the Mexican Riviera areas of Cancun and Cozumel will only experience tropical storm force winds.

The region where Dean is expected to hit, just north of the border with Belize, has one large city, Chetumal.

Chetumal is well inland, and the expected storm surge of up to 11 feet will mostly flood very sparsely populated areas.

Damage from Dean in Mexico may be considerably higher for the storm's second landfall, if it hits the major city of Tampico in the western Gulf of Mexico.

Another Tropical System Invest 92L

As it moves northwest at 15-20 mph, it has some potential to slowly develop into a tropical system, the National Hurricane Center in Miami-Dade County said. There is an area of disturbed weather associated with a tropical wave a few hundred miles northeast of the Lesser Antilles Islands.

NHC has labeled this system "Invest 92L" this morning. Wind shear is about 10 knots in this region, which is low enough to allow some development over the next few days.

This area is moving west-northwest, and will be near the U.S. East coast late this week. The next trough of low pressure strong enough to recurve this system is not due until Saturday, so this system will definitely be a threat to the U.S. if it develops.

Erin Finally Dies Out
Tropical Storm Erin finally died this morning over Missouri.

Erin re-intensified Saturday night over Oklahoma, forming a tropical storm like-vortex that brought up to 11 inches of rain to Oklahoma, and helped feed disastrous rains of up to a foot over southeastern Minnesota.

At least 13 deaths are being blamed on the resulting flooding, six of them in Oklahoma.

Kudos to Jamaica Radio - Power 106 FM in Kingston for broadcasting live over the Internet during Hurricane Dean.  

Locals and people from all over the world called in all night in an attempt to find relatives, along with the latest news. So many people expressed their gratitude for the wonderful, professional job the radio announcers did throughout the evening. This system has had me jittery for days, so it was great to listen in to what was really going on in Jamaica.

Also storm chaser Jim Edds is on the island, and will provide live video updates.

There are reports of three landslides, and extensive property damage - especially to Kingston, the capital city. Palisadoes Road, which links the capital of Kingston with the Norman Manley International Airport, is currently impassable.

Parishes are currently reporting the following: Portland, St. Mary and St. Catherine have substantial wind damage, storm surge and flooding. St. James, Kingston & St. Andrew severe wind damage and flooding. St. Thomas - Significant wind damage to roofs, storm surges, flooding, collapsed structures, impassable roadways are among the many reports.

Storm surges reported along the Port Henderson road in Portmore rendering the roadway impassable along with roof damage in the communities of Naggo Head and Newland. The Newland Road is also impassable.

Sections of the roadway have been eroded in Hellshire due to storm surges and rising water levels have been reported in Old Harbour forcing the evacuation of several persons.

Damage to critical facilities are as follows: Telecommunications, Cellular telephone lines are down in sections of Portland, St. Mary, and Clarendon and efforts are underway to re-establish communication links with St. Thomas as soon as possible. Over 125,000 people are without power, and there are reports of damage to the water supply systems.

And Hurricane Dean continues on its destructive path to the Cayman Islands, and then projected to make landfall in Mexico's Yucatan region.  

Weather watchers here in the U.S. are still not sure whether Dean will wobble and enter the Gulf and then target Texas, or another Gulf state.

How can you help Hurricane Dean victims? 

As I am sitting here waiting for news on Hurricane Dean, I am just amazed watching water rescues on CNN in Oklahoma. Tropical storm Erin has drenched Texas and has moved on to Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma highway patrol helicopters are picking up people from the flood waters. This is not the coast guard, and they do not have baskets to lower - they are using their hands trying to lift people onboard.

A lady that was being held by hand dropped from the helicopter back into the water. They swung around and picked her up again. Then they went back and picked up an elderly gentleman, and he also fell back into the water. Finally they were able to get him to land safely.

Now a small fishing boat is trying to rescue a man from a roof top. In fact there are many people on roof tops waiting to be rescued.

Hurricane Dean as seen from the International Space Station as it passed 214 miles above the storm. (AFP/NASA)

Hurricane force winds extend 60 miles from the center, and tropical force winds extend up to 205 miles. 

Jamaica is 146 miles in length, and 50 miles wide, so a direct hit would cover the entire island.

I've had such a bad feeling about this storm since its inception, and I pray that my feelings are incorrect - Linda

Hurricane Dean is a massive storm system - Last night the hurricane covered an area from Puerto Rico to Venezuela - which is approximately 600 miles.

So there is virtually no island that will be spared from high winds, surf and lots of rainfall.

Dean has already claimed at least three lives - 2 on the island of Dominica and 1 in Martinique.    

In times like these, all of the Caribbean islanders unite as one. Today while there are many who are grateful that this storm has passed, their thoughts and prayers are with their neighbors who are still awaiting the arrival of hurricane Dean.  

While the island of Barbados once again survived a direct hit, but their neighbors weren't so lucky.

St Lucia reports that this is one of the worst storms in recent history. The huge boulders that provided a protective barrier against the sea were moved by the powerful waves, and are now in the capital city of Castries, along with other debris and boats. Rodney Bay, one of the most popular tourists areas has also experienced heavy storm damage.

The tiny island of Dominica, along with the French island of Martinique both were battered by 130 + mile per hour winds that left extreme flooding, damage to residential and commercial buildings, and extensive crop damage.

Dean is now picking up strength and headed to Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and the Cayman Islands. The island of Hispaniola, home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti are expected to receive as much as five inches of rain, and this will produce devastating floods and mudslides.

Jamaica has been forecasted, and now still appears to be in line for a direct hit on Sunday. This is extremely bad news for one of the largest and most populated islands in the region.   

On Monday, as Dean gains even more strength and moves into the Gulf of Mexico, it has to hit land somewhere. The temperature in the Gulf is now between 86 - 87 degrees, which will only add steam to this already dangerous storm. The Yucatan Peninsula, home to Cancun and Cozumel are on hurricane warning alerts.

It's too early to forecast where it might hit in the U.S., but most are forecasting Texas. Texans are already battling rain and flooding from the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin. At least six people died this week because of Erin's thunderstorms, and one person remained missing.

Hurricane season officially runs from June to November.

In past most of the storms occurred in August, September and October. This season was predicted to have lots of storms, but currently the radar is clear of any tropical storm system.

We've received numerous inquiries from travelers about the 2007 hurricane season, and the question most asked is "where do I go to avoid hurricanes".

Every year hundreds of our clients enjoy their Caribbean vacation during hurricane season, so I do not advise avoiding the Caribbean during this timeframe. Unlike the winter season, the summer months offer great hotel values, along with many airfare sales.

There are islands normally outside the hurricane zone. The ABC islands are rarely hit by tropical storms or hurricanes and they are Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.

Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago are also good choices during hurricane season as they have rarely been hit by hurricanes.  

Unlike tornados, there are advance warnings of hurricanes, and travelers who do not heed warnings prior to leaving find themselves on an island during a storm.  

For those travelers that are especially jittery planning their Caribbean vacation during hurricane season, we suggest booking a "last minute trip."

These trips can be booked within 7-14 days, and as mentioned above advance warnings usually occur during this timeframe. Last minute doesn't mean planning at the final hour. Most travelers who take advantage of these vacation packages choose their dates in advance. Within two weeks of travel they visit our last minute booking engine and choose their vacation.

The downside is you have to choose the packages that are offered, but the upside is you can save up to 60% and more, along with avoiding islands in the path of approaching storms. 

Of course Mother Nature always wins out, and sometimes for those who have planned in advance, vacation plans have to be altered because of an approaching storm system.

We always advise travelers to purchase trip insurance, and in the case your vacation plans have to be changed because of a hurricane or tropical storm, you will not lose the money invested. In some cases we have been able to change plans without penalty and direct travelers to another destination.

So do not automatically assume your Caribbean vacation will be ruined during hurricane season.

As long as the forecast is clear, head on out to the Caribbean islands and have a great vacation.

Linda