During Christopher Columbus' fourth voyage to the new world, the explorer added another first to his amazing life story during the summer of 1502– he gave the first documented hurricane warning.
He was sailing just off the coast of the island of Hispaniola when he recognized the signs of an approaching hurricane. Large waves were crashing on the island shores off the Caribbean.
Normally, the near-constant trade winds of the tropics produced a steady and predictable wave action. Also, thick high cirrus clouds were overspreading the island from the east. He had learned from previous voyages that these two observations signified the approach of a hurricane.
Columbus needed safe harbor for his fleet and asked the Spanish Governor of Hispaniola, Don Nicolas de Orevando, for permission to sail his fleet into the port of Santo Domingo, but was denied access. He then set sail for protected locations south of the island.
Before leaving he warned Governor Orevando not to sail a fleet of 30 ships bound for Spain with gold and slaves, but to stay in port until the hurricane passed. Orevando ridiculed the warning and sent the fleet out to sea. The inevitable happened. The force of the hurricane destroyed all but one ship in the fleet. At least 500 men lost their lives.
Columbus and his fleet of four vessels survived the storm on the lee side of the island.
Thus began mankind's somewhat checkered history of denying or ignoring warnings of pending disaster and paying the consequences.
Today, Tropical Storm Gonzalo is bearing down on the northeast Caribbean and the center will pass near or over the islands of Antigua and Barbuda.
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It is forecast to pass very close to the Virgin Islands and just east of Puerto Rico late Monday and early Tuesday. The storm is then forecast to head north over the open Atlantic while strengthening into a hurricane.
I hope folks in Gonzalo's path heed local officials warnings better than a governor from long ago!