Shortly after the territory was placed on a drought watch last July, Youth Empowerment Project summer programme participants gathered up dry leaves on Moviene Fahie’s plot in Paraquita Bay. File photo: CHRYSTALL KANYUCK

Extreme drought conditions that have plagued the region since 2014 are expected to subside with the coming of the 2016 hurricane season, according to the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology.

Shortly after the territory was placed on a drought watch last July, Youth Empowerment Project summer programme participants gathered up dry leaves on Moviene Fahie’s plot in Paraquita Bay. File photo: CHRYSTALL KANYUCK
While the institute’s seasonal forecast calls for more rain, the region should also prepare for an increased risk of landslides and flash floods, according to a press release issued Monday.

“After the forecasted weakening of El Niño, its counterpart La Niña (a cooling of the Pacific) may take over and affect the region in the latter part of 2016,” the release states, adding that that La Nina “is likely to result in higher than normal rainfall and stronger storm systems.”

Adrian Trotman, the institute’s chief of applied meteorology and climatology, warned in the release that after a drought period, areas that see heavy rain are more vulnerable to landslides.

“Limited rainfall over the last few months has left many parts of the Caribbean with dry, compacted soils,” he said, adding, “As a result, heavy rainfall will not be easily absorbed by affected soil, which increases the risk of flooding.”

See the Feb. 18, 2016 edition for full coverage.

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