Tropical storm-force winds will “barely brush the west coast of the Cayman Islands”
(CMR) The Director General of the Cayman Islands National Weather Service, John Tibbetts shared that whilst TS Delta is strengthening she is also moving slightly away from the Cayman Islands as of 4 p.m. this afternoon.
He shared that earlier today we were expecting about six hours of tropical storm-force winds overnight. However, we are now projected to have about two hours with a movement towards the NW drifting towards the west-southwest – moving it west of the Cayman area.
However, he cautioned that the bands of thundershowers giving longer periods of sustained rainfall but “these spiral bands can bring you conditions similar to what is in the center of the storm.”
The storm's intensity is increasing and it is expected to be a hurricane around 1 a.m.
He also reminded everyone that April is the only month on record that has not had a storm so the necessity to be vigilant even outside of hurricane season is always there.
The panel expressed a great deal of confidence in the various emergency teams and how quickly they deployed and made decisions. The premier shared that he would rather be criticized for being over-prepared than not.
He shared that this press conference was to demonstrate how prepared the government is. He cautioned people against letting their guard down.
Shelters were prepared and on standby and can be deployed within 12 hours. Danny Coleman shared that shelter capacity was being increased that about six additional shelters should be coming on board by the end of the year.
Persons in self-quarantine homes are being checked on constantly and one person requested to be moved to a government facility. The team assisted with grocery shopping for some of those also in quarantine. Otherwise, there were no concerns about how that would be handled.
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the Cayman Islands including Little Cayman and Cayman Brac and the Isle of Youth. Tropical storm conditions are expected in the Cayman Islands beginning tonight.
An exclusive CMR source indicated that the female prisoners had been moved from Fairbanks and taken to the Northward facility for their safety.
The governor encouraged everyone to stay safe and he was confident the response team was handling all matters well.
Deputy Governor, Hon. Franz Manderson shared that there were a number of closures including the airport and port authority. He confirmed that damage assessment teams were prepped and ready to activate and the NRA had been actively cleaning wells and trimming trees. They will be responsible for clearing any debris after the all-clear is given.
Non-emergency weather calls can be made to 949-6555.
Data from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicate that the maximum sustained winds have rapidly increased to near 70 mph (110 km/h) with higher gusts.
Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles (110 km) from the center. Additional rapid strengthening is expected to occur during the next day or so, and Delta is expected to be a major hurricane when it nears the Yucatan Peninsula.
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