The Tribune

HEAVY rain and thunderstorms continued to batter The Bahamas yesterday and the bad weather is forecast to continue all week.

The same pattern of rain and thunderstorms is forecast for the next seven days, with highs of 30 to 32C, and winds from the east ranging from 20 km/h to 40 km/h, becoming more breezy after the weekend.

A tropical wave is moving along the Tropic of Cancer in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Through the middle of the week, this wave will migrate westward, reaching the Greater Antilles for the middle of the week.

It’s still too early to determine whether or not this will become an organised storm.

Either way, moisture along with showers and storms will move through the Caribbean, reports AccuWeather.com.

Flooding is ‘inevitable’ because we are in a new moon phase, The Bahamas Department of Meteorology said yesterday. It issued a special weather warning yesterday afternoon and evening for New Providence, Andros and adjacent waters.

Radar and satellite data had indicated a cluster of showers and thunderstorms moving slowly westward over the warning area.

This system had produced thunderstorms and dangerous lightning, with heavy downpours.

Residents in the warning areas and in particular low-lying area such as Pinewood Gardens, New Providence were urged to take action to protect their property.

It said: “Currently we are in the new moon phase and as a result, flooding is inevitable due to the alignment of the Moon, Sun and Earth. This alignment allows for a gravitational attraction on water bodies. Subsequently, the water table will move closer to Earth’s surface making it difficult for drainage.”