Climate expert Una-May Gordon says the rapid intensification of Hurricane Beryl is glaring evidence that the region needs to heed climate signals and improve its early warning systems.
In broad terms, an early warning system is designed to help communities prepare for and respond to natural disasters and climate hazards ahead of time.
It integrates the components of risk knowledge, monitoring and predicting, dissemination of information and response to warnings.
Ms Gordon says it should not have taken regional governments until Beryl formed and gained strength before beginning national preparations.
Ms Gordon, is a former head of the Climate Change Division of the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation.
She says if Caricom leaders had been heeding climate signals, they would not have been planning to host the heads of government meeting during a hurricane season forecast to be especially active.
The 47th Regular Meeting of the CARICOM Heads of Government was set for July 3-to-5 in St George’s, Grenada.
Baroness Patricia Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, was to be the meeting’s Special Guest.
UnaMay Gordon, climate and environment expert. She was speaking with Nationwide News from Belize.
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