By Carlena Knight
A greater investment in the Meteorological Division was one such call that Director of the Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Services (ABMS) Dale Destin made as the globe observed World Meteorological Day yesterday.
The director said that the met office has a number of plans that they want to put in place to improve the services offered, but without additional help these plans cannot be achieved.
“Clearly, there needs to be investment into the Met Division so that we can meet those goals. We are looking at passing a met bill into law to firmly establish the met service. We are looking at executing on a strategic plan going forward so that we set that next level foundation to move the service to a higher level.
“We are also looking to the likelihood of opening an office in Barbuda because we know there is an airport being developed over there, and wherever you have airports you have met services, and so that’s an opportunity that we are looking forward to in the future to serve the public even better,” Destin explained.
World Meteorological Day was established in 1951 to commemorate the World Meteorological Organization’s creation on March 23 1950.
This year commemorates 73 years under the theme ‘The future of weather, climate and water across generations’.
And it seems as if Destin and his team are certainly considering that as he revealed his office’s workforce has received a boost with a number of new personnel.
“We are happy to say that we have just brought on five new persons that will be the engine of the next generation of meteorologists, four of which are women. That’s something we are very proud of,” he said.
Destin admitted that being a meteorologist is sometimes seen locally as an inconsequential job, but he explains that such professionals are in fact linked to a number of areas in society, and without their data many cannot function.
“We provide services for aviation on a daily basis, without which the aviation industry would come to a halt. You need to have a met service at your airport to have an airport functioning, without which the airlines will not come because it plays a crucial role in safety and efficiency and reliability,” he said.
“We have seen over the past six months or so especially, that when the seas are rough, in terms of surfs, it impacts water. We also have a close relationship with APUA in terms of advising when we expect those swells so that they can have some planning in place to deal with the issue of the impact the swells would have on the plant.
“We give information in respect to the building industry and the shipping industry. We are just about applicable to every sphere of life,” Destin added.
According to the met service director, meteorologists have also played an integral role in collating climate change data over the years.
He said he is hoping that annual observances help the wider society truly recognise the significant contribution they make in Antigua and Barbuda not only during the hurricane season but all year round.