Chantal veering

- Norman Grindley

Scores of shoppers at a supermarket in Lane Plaza, Liguanea, St. Andrew yesterday stocking up on basic food items, some in preparation for Tropical Storm Chantal, which threatened.

David Williams, Freelance Writer

STORM precautions went into high gear yesterday as Jamaicans kept a watchful eye on the progress of Tropical Storm Chantal which raced westward across the Caribbean Sea, threatening the island, but later veering south.

A tropical storm warning remained in effect, with the centre of the storm forecast to pass between 170 and 220 kilometres south of Portland Point last night, and skirt the island's south coast today.

At press time the National Meteorological Service reported that the centre of the storm was located 265 kilometres south southeast of Kingston. The system was moving towards the west about 41 kilometres per hour, with a gradual slowing in forward speed expected today. Maximum wind speeds were near 95 kilometres per hour.

Chantal, which had regained strength after brushing past the islands of the Lesser Antilles on Thursday, was not forecast by Met officials to experience any change in strength up to this afternoon, and was not expected to drift northwards directly towards Jamaica. However, near storm-force winds were forecast for last night.

The National Meteorological Service warned that southern parishes would be particularly vulnerable to the heavy rainfall in the northern portion of the storm, and could experience flash-flooding especially in low-lying and flood-prone areas.

Sandra Minott, senior director for projects at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), said ODPEM's preparations for the storm, which were set in motion on Thursday afternoon soon after it formed in the Atlantic, were well advanced. The office conducted final consultations with other agencies including the National Meteorological Service, Jamaica Fire Brigade, Jamaica Constabulary Force, Jamaica Public Service Company (JPSCo), Cable and Wireless, the Ministry of Health, and the Port Authority, late yesterday afternoon to ensure that the agencies' preparations were completed and their emergency response plans were ready for activation should it become necessary.

Special attention was being paid to the areas of the island expected to be most severely affected by the storm, Mrs. Minott said. These areas included Kingston Harbour, and the coastal sections of St. Elizabeth, Clarendon, Manchester, St. Thomas, and St. Catherine, particularly the densely-populated area of Portmore in St. Catherine, which has a special evacuation plan.

As a result of the imminent storm conditions, the Airports Authority of Jamaica put its emergency operations in place at Kingston's Norman Manley International Airport, with reserve supplies and emergency personnel being put on stand-by. The national airline, Air Jamaica, was forced to alter its flight schedule. Flights JM050 and JM053 from Montego Bay to Bonaire were both cancelled, while the service from London (JM001 and JM002) terminated at Montego Bay instead of moving on to Kingston.

By afternoon, a few cloud bands associated with the system had drifted over eastern parishes, which were the first to feel the effects of Chantal. There were reports of rising tides at Port Antonio, Portland, and Parish Council Secretary/manager, Barbara Quarrie, told The Sunday Gleaner that officials there were anticipating flooding in the parish capital, with the threat of heavy rain and a back-up in drainage caused by the sea surges.

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