Torrential Rains Soak Belize: More Downpours on the Way

Belize has been drenched over the past twenty-four hours, with heavy showers sweeping across the country. A moist northerly airflow is fueling thunderstorms, especially in central and southern regions. The National Meteorological Service reports that Belize City picked up between one and three inches of rain, but Hattieville saw between five to six inches. These downpours started last night and carried into this morning, leaving streets slick and sparking concerns about localized flooding. Chief Meteorologist Ronald Gordon tells us the wet weather isn’t going anywhere just yet, the northerly system is still pumping moisture into the area, so expect more rain in the coming hours.

 

Ronald Gordon, Chief Meteorologist, National Meteorological Service

“We have a frontal boundary approaching the area and ahead of that, there’s a moist in northeasterly airflow which is supporting this shore activity. Going forward, we expect the front to approach and to become rather stationary that is, is gonna hang over us and therefore it’s gonna be a really one. Typically when we have the front crossing us, that’s when we get the dry, cold air. And also people call the cold front, but the front is actually the boundary where you have all that rain. And so for us in this particular front, it’s gonna be a rain front where we are gonna have continued showers and it’s on the storms tomorrow for Saturday and even into parts of Sunday. We are going to see some improvement going forward into Monday based on the forecast. Also, the likelihood is that it’s gonna continue with for the next at least for the next twenty-fourth to forty-eight hours with that frontal boundary, which will stall over us. Coupled with that, we also have supportive conditions at the higher levels, which is enhancing thunderstorm activity. So that is the reason why we have had those thunderstorms this morning in the city and Hattieville area, like I said before.”

 

Britney Gordon

“The weather, the rain that we’re expecting in the next couple of days, where will it be concentrated?”

 

Ronald Gordon

“Most of the country will get some rains, so as the frontal boundary moves over us, we expect that it’ll start most in the north and central areas at first. But eventually we expect most of the country to get some rains from that system.”