By: Hannah Reid    From Cayman Islands Government

The Kearney Gomez Doppler Radar is out of service due to mechanical issues. The Cayman Islands National Weather Service (CINWS) is working with the manufacturer to replace the damaged components and looks forward to sharing more detailed timelines for restoring radar service as soon as possible.

The radar went offline on Friday, 20 October, and members of the CINWS team investigated the issue over the weekend in order to locate the fault. The damaged part is not an off-the-shelf component and has to be manufactured once ordered.

Ministry of Sustainability & Climate Resiliency Chief Office Jennifer Ahearn said restoring the radar to full working order is a key priority during what is typically the busiest time of the Atlantic Hurricane Season.

“We understand that this latest issue with the weather radar comes during what is typically the busiest period of the Atlantic Hurricane Season – a time when access to radar imagery is of particular importance to the people of the Cayman Islands. I would like to assure the community that the Weather Service has access to other services and tools that enable their dedicated team of forecasters and meteorologists to continue to produce accurate forecasts, advisories and warnings. Nevertheless, restoring the radar to full working order is a key priority and we will do our utmost to expedite timelines wherever possible to secure and install the replacement part.”

CINWS Director General John Tibbetts said the Weather Service will continue to provide accurate, timely forecasts, advisories and warnings to the Cayman Islands community.

“The Weather Service will continue to work with all available operational tools to provide updates on weather conditions across the Cayman Islands,” he said. “We understand the importance of the radar to our community and we apologise for any inconvenience this service interruption may cause. The Weather Service will work assiduously to have the radar operational in as short a time as possible.”

Ahearn said: “We recognise the significant public interest in the status of the weather radar service and will continue to provide updates on the status of the repairs.”

The Weather Service issues three weather forecasts daily, in addition to severe weather notifications and warnings for marine and wind conditions on an as-needed basis.