Grand Cayman had the wettest wet season in 19 years, according to the Cayman Islands National Weather Service.
The wet season, which runs between May and November, saw 67.7 inches of rain in total, making it the wettest since 2005 and the fifth highest on record. In comparison, the same period in 2023 saw only 38.5 inches of rain.
The excessive rainfall was, as residents will recall, thanks in part to a particularly busy Atlantic hurricane season, with 11 hurricanes – five of which were major hurricanes – and 18 named storms.
Of those, three storms – Hurricane Beryl, Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Rafael – hit the Cayman Islands, the first time this has happened since Tropical Storm Fay, Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Paloma, made an impact in 2008.
June, September and November wetter than usual
May, July, August and October were drier than the 30-year monthly averages for Grand Cayman, but a particularly wetter-than-usual June, September and November more than made up for it, resulting in a cumulative total which was 20.1 inches above average.
June, which had over 20 inches of rain, was the second highest recorded for that month, while September was the third highest September.
The rainiest day across the whole season was Monday, 10 June, with 5.74 inches of rainfall, and there were nine days experiencing more than two inches of rain.
The rainiest weather system was Hurricane Helene with 12.5 inches of rain and wind speeds of 69 miles per hour.
Wettest season for Brac in four years
Cayman Brac recorded a total of 43.1 inches of rain, 9.6 inches above the 30-year average, making it the wettest season since 2020. Its rainiest day was 5 Nov., with 6.4 inches of rain thanks to Hurricane Rafael which caused widespread damage across the Sister Islands with 76 mph winds, helping to make that month the wettest November recorded for the Brac.
Grand Cayman warmer than average
Temperature-wise, the May-November season was warmer than average on Grand Cayman, with an average temperature of 85.5°F making it the second-warmest season on record, just 1.5°F behind 2023. The hottest temperature of the season was 94.6°F, recorded on Tuesday, 20 Aug., while the hottest day overall, with an average of 89.9°F, came two days later.
It was even hotter on Cayman Brac, which had an average temperature of 86.1°F, but a lower maximum temperature of 94.1°F recorded on Monday, 9 Sept. Both islands had an average humidity of 77%. Overall, the seasonal average temperature has increased by around 1.1°F over the last 10 years.
A Christmas conundrum
The unseasonal deluge on Christmas Day afternoon and persistent drizzle through the day led many locals to say that it was the wettest 25 Dec. in living memory. However, according to the National Weather Service, Christmas Day 2022 was actually wetter. NWS rainfall figures from Owen Roberts International Airport show that 14.5 millimetres fell on Christmas Day 2024, but 18mm fell on Christmas Day 2022. There was no rain at all on Christmas Day 2020 or 2021, and just 5.6mm of rain on Christmas Day 2023.
Average temperature for Christmas Day 2024 was 80.1°F, the same as on Christmas Day 2020 and marginally cooler than the 81.7°F in 2023.
Records at a glance
Grand Cayman
5th wettest wet season
2nd wettest June
3rd wettest September
2nd warmest wet season
Warmest May
Warmest August
Cayman Brac
4th wettest wet season
Wettest November
3rd warmest wet season
Warmest May
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