Dry June thanks to Sahara dust

There has been significantly less rain than usual for June this year, but according to the Met Office rainfall may pick up late into next month.

This month the measured rainfall level stands at just 160.3 millimetres when compared to the same period in 2019, when there was 224 millimetres. The average rainfall for June is 252 millimetres.

Meteorologist Stephan Dickson said the decrease was due to the high concentration of Sahara dust in the atmosphere.

“The Sahara dust usually has a negative impact on our rainfall in terms of the intensity and the frequency. The combination of the Sahara dust and the strong winds has limited the intensity of the rainfall events that we usually have around this time of the year.

“The totals are lower than previously anticipated. But we expect two rainfall events for the month, but this will not even push the levels in the 200-millimetre bracket.”

Dickson said as the Sahara dust starts to subside in July, rainfall is expected to increase and may be above average, as previously forecast.

He added that Colorado State University has forecast 19 named storms for the period across the Atlantic Basin, of which nine are expected to become hurricanes and four to evolve into category three hurricanes or higher.

Dickson said, “Between four to eight storms of those storms are expected to pass through the Caribbean, with two to become hurricanes.

“It is hard to say specifically if any major storms will affect us, but there is always a chance every season for us to get affected by a storm.”

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1-November 30.

The Atlantic basin includes the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico.