Caribbean Urged to Prepare for Hotter, Drier Conditions 

The Caribbean Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) and the University of the West Indies Climate Studies Group Mona (UWI CSGM) are urging governments, businesses, farmers, and households to ramp up preparedness efforts for potentially severe climate extremes as El Niño is expected to further strengthen, intensifying the hot, dry conditions being experienced in many parts of the region. The region must be particularly vigilant regarding extreme heat as August to October marks the peak of the Heat Season. Unseasonably dry conditions during this period are particularly concerning given that the region will enter its climatological Dry Season around November. Forecasts suggest that these dry conditions will extend into 2027, while potentially record-breaking heat may ensue from March, April or May during next year’s Heat Season.

Dr. Cedric Van Meerbeeck, Climatologist at CIMH, reported that since around May 2026 El Niño conditions in the Pacific rapidly strengthened from weak to moderate by July. The latest monitoring information reveals rapid further intensification of these conditions and highly confident forecasts predict very strong El Niño conditions during October to December 2026. These El Niño conditions are highly likely to persist into the peak of the Caribbean Dry Season, in March 2027).