Sept 29 weather report was cautious

For those viewers who simply can’t get enough of Keith we will replay the weather report from Friday night’s newscast. Although the report airs approximately 6:45 it is recorded by the Met Office several hours earlier at the studios of Bel Caribe Communications. For many Belizeans this was the first and last word on Keith before heading out for the weekend.

Ramon Frutos, Meteorologist

“Tropical Storm Keith formed in the northwestern Caribbean this afternoon, just north of Honduras. Hello Belize. with today’s hurricane watch, I am Ramon Frutos. The thunderstorms we have been experiencing this afternoon are part of a broad mass of convection associated with the season’s 11th tropical storm. On today’s sequence of satellite pictures, we can see the very disorganized thunderstorms extending from the coast of Honduras to Belize then northwards near Cayman and eastwards near Jamaica. The centre of Keith is right about here just to the southwest of this cluster of intense thunderstorms. At 3:00 p.m. local time, Keith was estimated to be near latitude 17.6 degrees north and longitude 85.2 degrees west or about 190 miles east of Belize City. Keith is drifting slowly north northwestward with winds of 50 miles per hour and could become a hurricane on Saturday or on Sunday. The Government of Mexico has declared a hurricane watch from Chetumal to Cabo Catoche. The Government of Belize has not issued any hurricane watch, however, Keith is being monitored closely for any change in intensity or direction. All interests in the northwestern Caribbean and Belize should keep monitoring this storm. All small crafts should remain in port and those out of sea should seek a safe harbour.”

As noted by Fuller, Keith’s subsequent progression to category 4 hurricane was one of the most sudden on record.