Weather

The hurricane season for this year came to a close on November 30th, making it one of the most damaging years. The season produced 14 named storms, of which eight became hurricanes, with two intensifying into major hurricanes.

The passage of Hurricane Lisa over Belize had minimal impacts on San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. While islanders prepared for the worst, most beachfront properties, including piers, were not observed with damages. One of the main effects of the hurricane on the island was the amount of debris left on the beach and detectable levels of erosion in certain areas.

As tropical storm Lisa formed into the sixth hurricane of the Atlantic 2022 season, San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, woke up to cloudy skies and quiet streets. The Category 1 hurricane is expected to make landfall today in Belize. To further extend the safety of islanders, shops and businesses are asked to close at 10AM, and residents should be at their homes after this time until the 'all clear' is given. Additionally, the sale of alcohol has been suspended for the time being, and shelters on the island opened from 7AM.

While Tropical Storm Lisa is forecasted to make landfall in southern Belize as a Category 1 hurricane tomorrow Wednesday evening, many families in San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, are voluntarily evacuating the island. Early on Tuesday, October 1st, large crowds arrived at the water taxi terminals and the John Greif II Municipal Airport, heading to the mainland. Meanwhile, residential and businesses secured their properties ahead of the pending storm.

A hurricane watch continues for the entire coast of Belize after the formation of Tropical Storm Lisa in the Caribbean Sea. As of 3PM, the storm continued moving west at 14 miles per hour (MPH) with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. People on Ambergris Caye have started to prepare for what could be Hurricane Lisa expected to make landfall in Belize late Wednesday.

The National Meteorological Service of Belize and the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) hereby inform the public that at 10:00 a.m. (local time), Tropical Storm Lisa was located near latitude 15.5N, longitude 77.3W or about 735 miles East by South of Belize City. Lisa was moving to the west at 12 mph with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and a minimum central pressure of 1003 mb. Lisa is to continue on a general west to west-north-westward track for the next few days. On this forecast path, the system will move south of Jamaica today, north of the northern coast of Honduras on Tuesday, and then approach the coast of Belize late Wednesday with landfall possible on Belize late on Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. Strengthening is expected and Lisa is expected to be a category 1 hurricane by landfall on the country.

The National Meteorological Service of Belize and the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) hereby inform the public that as at 4:00 p.m. (local time) Tropical Cyclone #15 (TC 15) was located over the Central Caribbean Sea near latitude 15.7N, longitude 73.6W or about 974 miles south of due east from Belize. TC 15 was moving to the west-northwest at 10 mph with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and minimum central pressure of 1005 mb.

Category 1 Hurricane Julia landed in Nicaragua on Sunday, October 9th, bringing destructive torrential rains. The deluge affected nearby countries like Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Belize. In Belize, the areas most affected included the mainland, with flooding in the south and central region of the country.