Drought continues, little sign of heavy rain ahead

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29: Bermuda’s drought conditions show little signs of easing — despite the possibility of rain over the weekend.

The island has been missed by rain on several occasions – and a ridge of high pressure to the south is holding off a weather front at present to the north west of Bermuda.

A spokesman for the Bermuda Weather Service said the best chance of heavier rain would come at the weekend.

He said: “Bermuda is a very small target — we have had thunderstorms 20 miles north of us, but only sprinkles of rain on the island.

“The best chance of rain is on Friday or Saturday, but the models are bouncing back and forth, so it’s hard to predict how much.”

The island has had just 0.87in of rain since the start of June and only 0.94in over the last 30 days.

The Bermuda Sun revealed last week that water delivery firms had been inundated with calls from people desperate to top up their tanks.

Water truckers said that many calls came from people who had never had to top up their tanks before.

Following lower-than-average rainfall last year, Bermuda has had just 13.19in of rain as of the start of the week, compared to the average of 25.91in — around half the normal amount.

The news came as the Ministry of Public Works underlined the need to save water — and emphasized tips on reducing usage.

• Government recommends using low water use fixtures and regular inspections of water tanks and plumbing fixtures;
• Leaks should be repaired as fast as possible;
• Use a bucket rather than a hose to wash cars — it uses less water;
• Showers should be taken instead of baths;
• The use of water on lawns and gardens should be kept to a minimum;
• Water should not be allowed to overflow sinks and baths or allowed to run longer than necessary;
• When doing laundry, the machine should be filled to capacity or set to a lower load size where possible;
• No one should order more water from delivery services than they are likely to need;
• The use of well water can cut down on the demand on tanks because it can be used for flushing toilets. But Government warned that it is illegal to use well water for drinking, cooking or topping up water tanks due to the risk of contamination.