Extreme Weather Conditions:

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Extreme Weather Conditions: 
I have chosen to stick to my assigned country, however, this weeks topic has been rather challenging...
Jamaica has no severe tornadoes, rarely gets hit by heat waves due to the sea breeze that comes in and is not effected by snow storms. What I did find was that cold fronts are a normal occurrence in Jamaica.
What is a Cold Front? 
"A cold front is the leading portion of a cold atmospheric air mass moving against and eventually replacing the warm air mass" (Dictionary). They can move northwest to southeast and the shift between cold and warm fronts can be drastic. It can go from freezing temperatures on the end of the cold front and warm temperatures on the end of the warm front.

How can we prepare?
Some common tips to prepare for a cold front are:
  • Wear layers. Gloves and a hat will prevent you from losing body heat.
  • Bring your pets indoors. They may have fur, but if it’s too cold for you, it’s too cold for them.
  • Keep your thermostat temperature constant throughout the day and night in order to avoid bursting pipes, when it gets down to freezing temperatures.
  • Speaking of pipes, it helps to run trickling water to prevent your pipes from freezing. Open your kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Keep the garage doors closed if there are water lines in the garage. If pipes do freeze, thaw them slowly with an electric hair dryer.
  • Never use the oven or the stove to heat your home.
  • If you use a space heater, make sure it’s on a level surface and it’s at least three feet away from anything flammable, and make sure to turn them off before you go to bed (in your bed that has lots of blankets, of course).
  • Car tire pressure can be affected by just a 10 degree change in temperature, and when gone unchecked, could cause flat tires and lead to accidents. Make sure your car’s tires are inflated properly.
Why are cold fronts common in Jamaica?
After researching for awhile, I found that Jamaica is largely affected by cold fronts because it is located in the northern western Caribbean region and can be influenced by cold fronts coming from the United States. 

https://www.thefreedictionary.com/cold+front
https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-a-cold-front-definition-facts-characteristics-associated-weather.html
http://austin.blog.statesman.com/2017/01/05/how-to-prepare-for-this-weekends-cold-front/

Comments

  1. Ana GGApril 14, 2019 at 10:53 AM

    Very nice research this week. We all learned a lot with this post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Diana HughesApril 14, 2019 at 6:43 PM

    I found your post this week to be very interesting. There is a lot of research, on how to stay prepared for a cold front, and why it happens in Jamaica. I also found it interesting that due to the location of Jamaica, it doesn't experience many extreme weather conditions.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Maite LizaolaApril 14, 2019 at 7:01 PM

    Very informative post. I always assumed Jamaica would have tropical weather, it's interesting to see that they experience something like cold fronts.

    ReplyDelete

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