Cayman’s Doppler radar remains down and looks unlikely to be up and running in the short term as it awaits parts and a technician.
The radar, which has been out of service since October, has been beset with ongoing issues which National Weather Service Director General John Tibbetts attributes to ageing equipment.
“We are starting to have regular problems with the radar… [which is] now 11+ years old,” he told the Compass, adding that its life expectancy is 15 years.
He said the parts that are needed to get the radar up have been ordered and a visit from the technician from the manufacturer, Leonardo, has also been sorted.
However, he said, “we are waiting for them to confirm shipment dates and the dates when the tech will visit.”
Cayman’s Doppler radar, located in High Rock, East End, has been out of commission for extended periods three times in the past two-plus years.
In October 2021, the radar was damaged in Tropical Storm Grace, with it out of service for nine months before being restored in July 2022.
It was also inoperable from March to May last year after encountering a hardware failure, and then again went down on Friday, 20 Oct. until now.
Though Cayman has been without the radar, Tibbetts, in a previous statement, indicated that weather service continues “to provide accurate, timely forecasts, advisories and warnings to the Cayman Islands community”.
Those seeking weather information in real time can still visit the National Weather Service official website which has current forecasts and features live infrared satellite images.
The radar is used to detect moisture and water droplets up to 250 miles from the Cayman Islands. When the radar is operational, people can visit the NWS website to view images from 30, 150 and 250 miles away.
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The radar tower looks like an advert for the Soccer World Cup, maybe that’s the problem. Has it occurred to Mr Tibbetts that as the existing tower will be more than 12 years old by the time it’s “fixed” and will no doubt be “on holiday” again for a lengthy total period over the remainder of it’s 15 year “lifetime” it would make more sense to retire the current structure NOW, and build a new one?.