The first effects of the Fiona storm were felt in the night from Friday to Saturday in Guadeloupe, placed in red vigilance for heavy rains and thunderstorms since Friday shortly before 6 p.m. (midnight Paris time). Some roads were already waterlogged in the evening, especially in Basse-Terre, where the bulk of the phenomenon was expected during the night.
According to the latest bulletin from the Guadeloupe Meteorological Center, the center of storm Fiona was at midnight “in the Caribbean 40 km from Basse-Terre” and was moving west. Gusty winds were expected “up to 100/120 km / h” in Guadeloupe overnight, according to meteorologists.
Heavy rains generating “numerous floods” were expected to intensify over the following hours and last until early morning, often accompanied by thunderstorms, with cumulative rains of up to 150 mm or more in three hours.
Many heavy and stormy showers were expected until midday, according to the Guadeloupe Meteorological Center. Météo France has also maintained orange vigilance for “violent winds” and “waves-submersion”. The waves will reach heights of 4 m to 4.50 m, indicates Météo France.
“You really have to stay at home”
“All trips are to be avoided from now on (…) you really have to stay at home” to “avoid risks being taken”, insisted the prefect of Guadeloupe, Alexandre Rochatte, Friday evening in the local media. The Saint-Louis road, “whose ford has already overflowed” was to be closed at 6 p.m. local time and the Traversée road at 7 p.m. “due to the risk of falling trees”, the prefecture said in a statement. released late Friday afternoon.
Suspended from 7 p.m. Friday evening until Saturday 12 p.m., traffic will only resume depending on weather conditions, the statement also said. All schools in Guadeloupe closed at noon on Friday and many residents tidied up the terraces, busy removing potential projectiles that could cause damage under the effects of the wind.
In the supermarkets of the island, the queues at the checkout had been long Friday morning. In particular, customers had stocked up on water packs, to compensate for the cuts that often occur during bad weather. “I took three, that should be enough until Sunday, when the sun should come back”, testified Mylène H., 56, in the rays with a shopping cart filled with water and canned goods, “just in case” .
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All weekend activities such as sports competitions, or Heritage Days, have been canceled due to the arrival of the storm. The Heritage Days may be postponed “to a later date” said the prefecture on Friday in a press release.
According to Météo France, Fiona “formed in the center of the Atlantic on September 15” and “this is the 6th tropical system of the season in the Atlantic basin”. September 16 is also the anniversary of Cyclone Hugo, a category 5 hurricane that devastated the island in 1989.
Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélémy are on yellow alert. The accumulations of rain forecast are of the order of 50 to 80 mm on the two islands. Wind gusts should not exceed 50 to 60 km / h, specifies Météo France. Martinique will be even more on the fringe but could experience some heavy stormy showers tonight.