For the latest information on storm activity in the Cayman Islands, as well as information on how to prepare for hurricane season, visit Storm Centre.
Update – 2:30pm, 6 Oct.: The National Hazard Management Council has officially issued the all-clear for all three of the Cayman Islands.
Hurricane Delta strengthened to a Category 4 storm this morning and passed closest to Cayman between 8am and 9am. It has picked up speed since then and is on a northwesterly path towards the Yucatan peninsula.
The National Hazard Management Council earlier today issued a severe marine warning, as strong winds and rough seas continue in the area. That warning is expected to remain in place for the next 24-48 hours.
In a statement issued by the Government Information Services, Deputy Governor Franz Manderson said, “We have once again been spared from a devastating hurricane and we are very grateful for this near miss whilst we remained fully prepared.”
Premier Alden McLaughlin, in the same statement, said, “We in the Cayman Islands are all very thankful for the path that Hurricane Delta has taken, sparing us from its potential wrath.
“Government entities have once again demonstrated their efficiency in preparedness for this storm. We as a Government also express our sincere gratitude to the people and businesses of the Cayman Islands for their swift response and preparedness as well as their continued vigilance as we remain in a very active hurricane season.”
The government statement noted that Cayman had experienced some interruptions to utility services, and the utility companies were working to restore them.
The council urged people on all three islands to exercise caution as they move around and to watch for flooding, downed trees and road disruptions.
All government operations remain closed for today and will reopen to normal hours tomorrow, Wednesday, 7 Oct., the statement noted.
In addition, all schools will resume normal opening hours from Wednesday.
The Ministry of Education stated that the Department of Education Services’ Facilities Unit had already begun site checks on all government schools and education offices. It said teachers would be contacted by school leaders to unpack classrooms this afternoon in preparation of government schools reopening tomorrow at 8:30am.
All operations, including transportation, janitorial, security and landscaping, will return to normal. DES offices and the Cayman Brac Teachers Centre will also reopen for their normal opening hours, 8:30am to 5pm, the statement noted.
According to the National Hurricane Center’s 2pm update, the storm now has reached maximum sustained winds of 140 miles per hour and is moving west-northwest at 16 mph.
Original story: The National Hazard Management Council plans to lift the tropical storm warning for all three Cayman Islands and issue the all-clear at 1pm, as Category 4 Hurricane Delta moves away from the islands.
Related links
- Delta now a Category 4 hurricane
- Delta intensifies into category 2 hurricane
- UPDATED: Sea conditions intensify as Hurricane Delta approaches
- Live blog: Tropical storm closures
- Storm likely to “brush” west coast of Grand Cayman Tuesday morning
- Volunteers rally to foster animals ahead of storm
- Cayman Airways flight schedule affected by storm
“Considering 24 hours ago, a little bit more than that, we were in the centre of the forecast track product issued by the National Hurricane Center, in Miami, I think we’re fortunate now to watch this (category four) hurricane pass to the southwest of Cayman,” Hazard Management Cayman Islands’ Simon Boxall said.
Boxall said there were no reports of injuries due to the storm, adding that approximately 100 customers lost power due to falling tree limbs. One person checked into the Red Cross shelter on Huldah Ave., while no one accessed the John Gray High School shelter, according to Boxall. Both shelters are now closed.
National Weather Service Director General John Tibbetts said Hurricane Delta passed at its closest point to Grand Cayman between 8am and 9am this morning, and while the weather system’s wind speeds are picking up, the storm is moving away from Cayman.
However, Tibbetts said the weather service had issued a severe marine warning at 10am and this would be in force until further notice “because we don’t want people around the sea right now because it’s dangerous”.
“There are going to be people out there who are saying we scared the people for nothing. but we have a category four hurricane right now within 100 miles of the Cayman Islands.”
Tibbetts added that strong wave action currently being seen along the south coast is likely to spread to the west coast later today. Wave heights along the south coast this morning were 10-12 feet high, and the west coast can expect wave heights of 5 to 7 feet, he said.
He said Cayman Islands authorities had been correct to respond as they did to the threat of the storm, by closing schools and government facilities and putting the storm warning in place, even if the weather system did not impact Cayman as severely as predicted.
“There are going to be people out there who are saying we scared the people for nothing,” he said, “but we have a category four hurricane right now within 100 miles of the Cayman Islands – 100 miles is an acceptable error as far as the hurricane centre is considered, so that storm could have been on top of us as a category four hurricane.”
At 10am, the storm was 120 miles southwest of Grand Cayman, moving west-northwest at 18 miles per hour, with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph.
Tibbetts said showers and cloudiness would continue for at least the next 24 hours.
Premier Alden McLaughlin said in an audio statement, “We are truly thankful to God for this near miss. We are most grateful to emergency responders and those in the [National Emergency Operations Centre] for the work they have done and continue to do.”
– Reshma Ragoonath, Norma Connolly and Kevin Morales contributed to this report.
Related Videos
