safety steps

Urgent – Marine Weather Message
Small Craft Advisory
Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Services
10:00 am Sunday 30 June 2024

…Small craft advisory in effect for Antigua and Barbuda and will go into effect for St. Kitts, Nevis and Montserrat, Anguilla and The British Virgin Islands from Monday morning.

Locations to be affected: Mainly, open waters on the Atlantic sides of the islands out to 20 nautical miles.

Timing: Until Friday afternoon for Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla and The British Virgin Islands. Until Thursday afternoon for St. Kitts, Nevis and Montserrat.

Synopsis: Fresh to strong winds along with winds associated with Major Hurricane Beryl as well as Invest 96L, are forecast to cause a combination of wind waves and wind swells, resulting in hazardous seas, mainly on the Atlantic sides of the islands.

The threat level to the life, livelihood, property and infrastructure of mariners is to rise to moderate with the potential for significant impacts.

A small craft advisory means that wind speeds of 21 to 33 knots and or wind waves and or wind swells of 7 feet or greater are occurring or imminent.

Winds over open waters: East at 23 to 37 km/h (12 to 20 knots; 14 to 23 mph), with strong gusts to 58 km/h (31 knots; 36 mph).

Seas (significant wave heights): 2.1 to 3.4 metres (7 to 11 feet), occasionally or locally reaching near 4.0 metres (12 feet).

Wind waves and or wind swells of 1.8 to 2.4 metres or 6 to 8 feet and occasionally higher. The dominant wind-wave period is 6 to 9 seconds.

Potential Impacts: Loss of life at sea; injuries to mariners; capsize or damage or loss of vessels and marine equipment; financial losses; disruption of fisheries and scarcity of fish products and disruption to marine transportation.

Caution: Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller vessels should avoid navigating in these conditions.

Please continue to monitor these hazardous, life-threatening marine conditions. Stay tuned to updates from the Meteorological Office through antiguamet.com and Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @abmetservice. Also, stay tuned to other media platforms for updates.

Forecaster: Letitia Humphreys