Hurricanes and their effect on the Caribbean Nations

August 25, 2022 – The effect of hurricanes on Caribbean societies has a colossal impact, especially on the loss of lives, economic dislocation, and damage to infrastructures, as well as the fears of persons in disaster prone communities, when the Atlantic Hurricane Season begins.

The Season runs from June 1st until November 30th—the months during which tropical storms are most likely to form and wreak havoc on their mainly westerly course through the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea.

There are many arguments that exist as to the cause of hurricanes, such as the human affect, scientific causes, and divine reasons, as well as the argument, widely held belief by vast amount of people in the Region, that disasters occur to punish unrepentant souls.

Increasingly, to date, the human cause and effects, as well as scientific reasons are being accepted as the causes behind these disasters. Importantly, international funding agencies are providing finance for scientific research and regulations to ensure increased safety.

While the cause debate rages, there is no question that Caribbean hurricanes are one of the most frequent natural disasters that impact the Region, and a tropical cyclone with sustained one-minute winds of at least 74 miles per hour, is created when warm water hits the troposphere and high pressure pushes warm, dry air down in the center.

This occurrence is said to be particularly strong in the Caribbean due to the high amounts of humidity and warm air that produce near perfect conditions to form these hurricanes, which are measured by the Saffir-Simpson scale and the Power Dispersion Index (PDI).

In 2019, Hurricane Dorian was the strongest hurricane on record to strike the Bahamas, with one-minute sustained winds of 185 mph (298 km/h), causing $2.5 billion in damage, and at least 74 deaths.  Dorian was one of four Category 5 hurricanes to hit the Bahamas.

Notably, Hurricanes that have wreaked havoc on the Caribbean, include Hurricane Gilbert, 1988, Hurricane Sandy, 2012, Hurricane Joaquin in 2015, and most recently, Hurricane Irma in late 2017.

The experts say when a hurricane strikes the islands, the ecology is thrown out of its normal cycle, topography shifts, agriculture is set back, the economy and industry take a blow, society either unites or falls apart, infrastructure is ruined, and preventative measures must be implemented.