The National Hurricane Centre is reporting, the centre of Gustav has made landfall along the Eastern Tip of Jamaica (Morant Point)at 18oo UTC or 1pm local time. The met service of Jamaica is reporting the center has passed over Morant Point, the Norman Manley International Airport and is currently passing over St.Catherine .  Winds at the time were near hurricane force, but Gustav was not upgraded as the data was not convincing enough. Western Jamaica, not much activity with the exception of intermittent showers and occasional gust up to 30mph.Eastern Jamaica has been taken a battering. Persons are calling radio and television stations reporting roofs ripped off, downed powerlines, uprooted trees and storm surges. In fact, the Mancheneil Primary School, which was being used a shelter had its roof blown off and evacuees had to be moved. Some reported a sudden calm, so some persons are experiencing the “eye”.Persons are now steaming in to shelters.

The Nwa is reporting 16 reports of flooded and blocked roads.

The current track takes the center of Gustav right over Montego Bay in about 12 hours time. So I will be getting the worst of it.

So Far

lowest pressure reported

990mb as Gustav passed over the Norman Manley International Airport.

Highest winds

50mph Norman Manley International Airport

picture taken Thursday,August 28,2008 6:15edt

Itʼs a hectic morning across Jamaica. Last night Jamaicans were told Tropical Storm Gustav would move over the water north of Jamaica, bringing a rainy day. This morning, Jamaicans are waking up to news that a Hurricane Warning is effect for Jamaica with the center of Tropical Gustav forecast to pass over or just south of the South Coast. This is causing some serious problems. Emergency management and the other agencies had focused their resources on Jamaicaʼs North Coast and now with the shift in track they are rushing to prepare the South Coast before Gustav strikes. Many persons along Jamaicaʼs South Coast thought it would be just a wet day, and started the day as normal. As a result reports are coming in from all over the place of people been in places they donʼt want to be with the approach of Gustav. In fact, the media is reporting persons stranded in Rocky Point. There are also reports of persons still on the Keys and Banks. Some say they are leaving as they believe nothing is coming. Hopefully, the Jamaica Defence Force can persuade them to leave.

The National Hurricane Center 11 am edt track the has Tropical Storm Gustav making landfall over Jamaica. This would make Tropical Storm Gustav the first tropical cyclone since Hurricane Gilbert of 1988.to make direct landfall over Jamaica. Hurricanes Dean, Ivan and Charley never made landfall since the eye stayed offshore.

Currently, 11:30edt.In Western Jamaica the weather is not bad. There are light showers in Montego Bay. Winds throughout the morning have been ene-e ranging from 15-20mph.Each time a squall moves through we see higher gust, but nothing near tropical storm force yet. Much of Eastern Jamaica is experiencing tropical storm conditions. Persons are calling in the radio stations from Eastern Jamaica reporting intense rainfall and strong winds. Thanks to technology you can hear what we are hearing in Jamaica. Below are the links to the Jamaicaʼs radio stations online providing comprehensive coverage.

Nationwide Radio

http://www.nationwidenewsnetwork.com/

Love 101fm

http://www.lovefm.org/dialup_default.asp

Newstalk 93 fm

http://www.newstalk.com.jm/LiveStream.htm

Power106 fm great coverage

http://www.go-jamaica.com/power/

Technical information

Based on the 15utc  and 12 utc synop reports for Sangster International Airport Montego Bay. There is few cumulus with Cb at 2400ft and broken, dense patches of cirrus at 22,000 ft .The state of the sky tropics group, 6, Isolated cumulonimbus or large clusters of cumulus turrets separated by wide areas in which clouds are absent east of the terminal . Visibility is 4 miles/7 km. No rain in the past 24hrs.High 33.3 deg c, low 25.1. Sea level pressure (15utc)1009.6mb,at 12utc was1008.6mb. Earlier winds were east north easterly, now north easterly.

Less technical information

It a beautiful, bright sunny morning in the friendly of Montego Bay, Jamaica. The mood has changed; people seem less concerned than yesterday, now the threat of hurricane force winds have diminished. The head of AirJamaica said this morning all flight will run as scheduled now that the system is forecast to keep north of Jamaica. The airport will keep open, power and water will be up and running. It seems tomorrow will be business as usual here, but people should not get their guard down. The forecast calls for Heavy rains and gusts up to tropical storm force in squalls. Hotels along the North Coast are being warned of storm surges of up to 2 meters. So people should stay out of the water.

Below are all our local radio stations that stream live online.

Nationwide radio ,Newstalk93 fm ,and  Power106fm have the best coverage.6pm est is the evening newscast.

Online radio stations

Klas 89 fm (sports radio channel not much hurricane coverage)

http://www.jamdirek.com/KLASsportsfm89.php

Newstalk 93 fm (good hurricane coverage)

http://www.newstalk.com.jm/LiveStream.htm

Linkz fm 

http://www.linkzfm.com/radio.php

Vybz 96fm (mostly music not much hurricane coverage)

http://www.vybzfm.net/player/live_player.php

MegaJamz fm (mostly music, not much hurricane coverage)

http://www.megajamz.com/

Love 101 (Gospel ,coverage if the situation gets bad.)

http://www.lovefm.org/dialup_default.asp

St.Bess fm not much coverage mostly music

http://www.bessradio.com/

Zip 103fm (not much coverage mostly music)

 http://www.zipfm.net/main.php

Power106 fm great coverage

http://www.go-jamaica.com/power/

Irie fm mostly music

www.iriefm.net

It is a mostly cloudy morning in Montego Bay, Jamaica. There are a lot of high level clouds around compliments of Hurricane Gustav.I woke up this morning to knocking and sawing .It seems some people in the neighbourhood are preparing for Hurricane  Gustav. Last night, the Meteorological Service issued a Hurricane Watch and ordered the immediate evacuation of the keys and banks. This frightened some people and sent them into preparation mode. In Montego Bay, the older people will tell you about Hurricane Allen of 1980.Most hurricanes move south of Jamaica, meaning  the North Coast donʼt normally get storm surges, but Allen, like Gustav is forecast, moved through the Windward Passage and very close to Jamaica. The results were extensive damage, eight persons killed and a reported 12 feet storm surge in the Montego Bay area.

 The various model guidance have shifted south and the latest National Hurricane Centre forecast now puts Hurricane Gustav 80miles away from the North Coast. The track no longer has Gustav moving over Cuba, but in the Windward Passage. Hurricane Gustav will eventually make it into a Category Five Hurricane. The current track puts the north coast in 34kt(40mph)wind range, so heavy  rain and battering waves are the main threat for us. The track could shift again, so monitor the releases issued by the NMS of Jamaica.

Link http://www.metservice.gov.jm/news.asp

There are no significant clouds in Montego Bay, Jamaica ending a bright, sunny day.The local news is swarming with news of Gustav so many persons are aware of the situation. Meanwhile,local officals have been meeting to discuss the situation.

The strong tropical wave and associated low pressure which has been moving through the Central Caribbean Sea, has been upgraded by the National Hurricane Centre to Tropical Storm Gustav. Gustav is the seventh tropical storm of the 2008 Atlantic season.

This morning, satellite and microwave imagery revealed well defined bands and an eye-like feature. A quikscat pass (a satellite that collects wind speed and direction over the water) indicated a surface circulation was present and what was 94L was upgraded to Tropical Depression Seven. Two hours later, when the Hurricane Hunter flew into T.D 7, they found tropical storm force winds mostly southeast of the centre, with top winds near 60mph and Gustav was born. The model guidance are all over the place on Gustav. Most  the more reliable model guidance take Gustav across Haiti and Cuba, while other  take Gustav in the Jamaica- Cayman- Windward passage  area and even into Belize. This goes to show Jamaicans should keenly monitor Gustav, as the track can still change. The official track takes Tropical Storm Gustav across the Barahona peninsula, near the Aquin- Anse-a-Veau area as a category one hurricane on Tuesday around 2pm est.The Barahona peninsula is quite narrow and not much weakening is anticipated before Gustav makes a second landfall near Guantanamo as a category one hurricane.It would then  spend four days travelling across Eastern,Central and Western Cuba.

 Jamaica can expect rainy weather Tuesday Night into Wednesday night with gusts up to gale force along the North Coast.

For the latest local statement from Jamaicaʼs National Meteorological Service

Vist  www.metservice.gov.jm/news.asp

Local officials are closely monitoring a strong tropical wave currently passing over the Southern Windward Islands. The system (94L) has already produced between 20-50mm of rainfall and 40 mph gusts in the area. There are indications that a surface circulation is developing and a tropical depression could form tomorrow or Monday. The environment ahead of 94L looks very favorable for development. In fact, some of the intensity guidance brings it to hurricane status by Tuesday night. Jamaicans should really monitor this system as most of the model guidance are clustered over or south of the island. Earlier, there were more spread among the models ,with some leaning more to Hispaniola, but with each run they seem to be trending more to the Jamaica area. Another system (95L) also has the potential to develop into a hurricane, but is no threat to the Caribbean.

For  sure …

Squally weather will to continue tonight into tomorrow for Windward Islands.

The tropical wave (94L) will move into a more favorable environment over the next couple of days.

There is model support for development.

Heavy rain will likely occur on Wednesday, when the system moves into the Jamaica area.

Residents and interests in Jamaica, Cayman, Haiti, Cuba, Southern Bahamas, and the Dominican Republic should closely monitor this system by listening to your local media, emergency management, weather office and www.nhc.noaa.gov/index.shtml  

Uncertain ….

Invest 94 developing into a hurricane.

Possibility of Hurricane condition for Jamaica on Wednesday.

great link for model guidance  http://tropicalatlantic.com/plots/94-googlemaps.shtml

Great blogs links to monitor the situation

(Guidance models are characterized as either early or late, depending on whether or not they are available to the Hurricane Specialist during the forecast cycle. )

Another exciting day as Jamaica continued the gold rush winning the both gold and bronze in the womenʼs 200m. Veronica Campbell came first, making a personal best of 21.74 ,while Jamaica struck again as Kerron Stewart took bronze with 22 .Our little island, only 50 miles wide is now ranked  12^th out of 205 countries  in the Beijing Olymics.

Today was a mostly fair day. The high 32.9 deg c, the low 23.7 deg c. No precipitation since yesterday.

below Veronica Cambell after  today's win (source Getty)

Many Jamaicans have lost their voices tonight. It was another day of pot clanging, shouts and dances. Many Jamaicans and Caribbean nationals around the world have been celebrating the amazing performance of our athletes’. In a fifteen minutes period, Jamaica earned two gold medals, broke an Olympic, then a world record. First, Usain Bolt demolished the 12 year old “untouchable World record “in the men’s 200m. Soon after, Melanie walker captured the women's 400 hurdles and broke the Olympic record.

Tomorrow (Thursday, 21th August) another exciting day (the big race at7:30 am est./6:30am Jamaica time).We are expected to win gold tomorrow. Take out your pot covers, toot your horn, and wear your Jamaican colors it’s our time to shine.

Montego Bay experienced some golden light to moderate rainfall which lasted almost 3 hours officially; 20mm of rain. (observation taken 6:30 a little more rain fell since). The rain has now ceased.

Below The BBC covering the celebrations

Source http://news.bbc.co.uk/

Video of the celebrations http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7573482.stm

Wild celebrations in Jamaica as Usain Bolt strikes gold

The streets around Half Way Tree are always busy - it is one of the main roads running through Kingston and is home to the city's main bus terminal.

It is dominated by an old clock tower but on Wednesday, two giant screens were the centre of attention.

The streets came to a standstill as the public spilled out of nearby offices, shops and buses to watch a moment marked in history.

Jamaica has become a super power in track and field events in recent years, especially in the sprints, but it has never had an Olympic champion in the 200m.

The same was true of the 100m until Saturday, when Usain Bolt smashed the record and took the elusive gold medal.

Riding high on the success of their hero the crowd were already predicting a new world record, even before the race began.

"They should build a new national stadium for Jamaica when Usain wins the 200m, a brand new one in his honour when he mashes up the record," said one fan.

Wild crowds

As the race was about to begin, Bolt's appearance on the big screen caused pandemonium.

Bolt walked around the starting line, soaking up the moment and playing to the crowd in the Bird's Nest Stadium - he was also performing to his fellow countrymen here in Kingston.

Flags were being waved in a frenzy and every time the cameras cut to Bolt the crowds would scream, shout - and in some cases jump up and down - in anticipation.

But as the runners went into the blocks the crowd fell nearly silent.

When the gun went off, people surged forward into the middle of the road, stopping buses and trucks to get the best view.

As Bolt went into the lead they went wild, and when he crossed the finishing line in first place and in record time, the noise was deafening.

A combination of screams, shouts, and car horns started in unison as people began to take in what they had just witnessed.

For most Jamaicans the result was expected, but had he taken the world record?

Jamaican whispers

For a moment which seemed like an eternity, there was the Jamaican version of Chinese whispers, which are more akin to a shout.

Bolt had indeed broken American athlete Michael Johnson's world record of 19.32 seconds, by clocking 19.30 in Beijing.

"He's taken home the gold in the 100 and 200m. When he arrives, we'll carry him on our shoulders from the airport to here," said one person in the crowd.

No mean feat, when you consider the airport is a good half hour's journey by car, never mind by foot with a crowd of thousands.

But here in Jamaica, Bolt's welcome home from the Beijing Games will be unprecedented in the island's history.

Sports minister, Olivia "Babsy" Grange, has already announced that a red carpet will be rolled out for the competitors who have taken part in the games, but Usain Bolt will undoubtedly be the centre of attention.

At the end of the race the sprinter was seen dancing to the Nuh Linga, a dance made popular by dancehall artist Elephant Man.

The celebrations are only just beginning for the sprinter, who turns 22 on Thursday. But he still has his heart set on gold in the 4x100m on Friday night, so he will have to wait.

Back home, they have already started celebrating on his behalf.

 end

Caribbean Plot

Yesterday, Montego Bay experienced its highest temperature for the decade. Officially, The Sangster International Airport reported a high 35.5deg c/96 deg F (35.6 at my weather station). The all-time high for Montego Bay is 36.2 deg C and the all time low is12.8 deg C. Today, we were much cooler; the high only 32.2 deg c. Day time heating this afternoon (started 1:16pm) gave us some moderate rainfall. The rain only lasting about 5 minutes and is officially only 3mm.

Woman perishes in flooded gully
published: Monday | August 18, 2008

update  August 17th 8:40edt

The skies have really cleared up and tomorrow will be a nice day. Sad to report one man died while trying to cross a flooded fording. He was driving a suv and probably thought he could cross, but he and his car was washed away. His body and his vehicle have been recovered. There are reports of flooded roads and landslip ages in St.Elizabeth and the Corporate area.The clean up is well underway.Here in Western Jamaica, no big impacts from Tropical Storm Fay.Montego Bay received 14mm of rain from Tropical Storm Fay.

Picture August 17, 2008 7:30est skies clearing up as tropical storm watch is lifted and Fay moves away.

Previous blog update from 1pmedt