San Juan, Oct. 20 (EFE) – Several territories in the Eastern Caribbean, including Guadeloupe, Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla, Saint Martin and Saint Barthelemy, on Friday took measures and warned the population of the passage of Hurricane Tammy.
Tammy became a hurricane on Friday, threatening the Leeward Islands and bringing heavy rains and flooding to much of the Lesser Antilles.
Tammy has maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour (120 km/h), according to the latest bulletin from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
In anticipation of the hurricane’s impact, residents of the Caribbean territories flocked to supermarkets to stock up on supplies.
Recalling the ravages of Hurricane Irma in 2017 and the devastation on the island of Barbuda, as well as the recent passage of Tropical Storm Phillippe, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne urged residents to be vigilant and take the necessary precautions to minimize the storm’s impact.
Browne told residents that the country’s ability to withstand the onslaught of this storm as a nation is directly related to the responsibility each individual takes.
Similarly, the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA) issued a statement on Friday urging residents to stay indoors.
APUA also warned that desalination plants across the island may have to be shut down for up to 48 hours after the storm due to the effects of ocean waves and to minimize the likelihood of moisture in high voltage electrical panels.
According to the track chart provided by the NHC, Tammy will be in open waters east of Puerto Rico on Sunday.
Its center was about 165 miles (265 km) east-southeast of Martinique and about 240 miles (385 km) southeast of Guadeloupe.
The NHC forecasts that Tammy will bring hurricane conditions to parts of the Leeward Islands late tonight and Saturday, with heavy rain and flooding likely over much of the Lesser Antilles.
Tammy is producing rainfall that will leave a maximum of 12 inches (30 cm) of accumulation in the Leeward Islands, while in the British and US Virgin Islands, east of Puerto Rico, the maximum amounts will be 4 inches (10 cm). EFE
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