By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Chief Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

THE Department of Meteorology yesterday released computer server verification logs indicating that its Doppler weather radar was operational throughout the period that Hurricane Joaquin formed and subsequently ravaged the southern Bahamas.

The logs are evidence that the server had been running continuously for 93 days, 20 hours and 51 minutes at the time of its download on October 21, according to Department of Meteorology Director Trevor Basden.

The disclosure directly contradicts last week’s controversial claims by forecaster Wayne Neely, who has insisted that the department’s Doppler radar was not functioning for several hours during the passage of Hurricane Joaquin. The government repeatedly refuted the claims; however, Mr Neely maintained that as the category-four storm battered several Family Islands, the department was without the important weather instrument, adding that he would have never pinpointed issues with the radar if they did not exist.

In his statement, Mr Basden said: “The public is advised that the verification logs are used to substantiate the operability of the radar, as the log files are only produced when the radar has been radiating; while the radar is radiating it is able to produce echoes within its effective range of 150 miles when there is precipitation to record.

“These logs are produced daily at 8pm. Having regard to the ongoing speculation surrounding this issue, the department’s electronics manager and information technology technician determined it necessary to download these logs, a study of which affirmed the advice which was repeated by the minister, the director, and the senior deputy director of the Department of Meteorology that the radar was completely operational while Joaquin was in the Bahamas.”

The statement continued: “The logs show an unbroken sequential set of entries from July 21 to October 21, 2015 (the date of the download) that the server had been running for 93 days, 20 hours and 51 minutes, when the log file was captured and printed. This data emanates from the radar’s own factory supplied operating system, the time stamp on which is proof positive that the radar had been operational and radiating without interruption from July 21, 2015.”

A series of articles about the claims were published in The Nassau Guardian last Monday.

At a press conference that same day, Transport and Aviation Minister Glenys Hanna Martin and senior officials from the Department of Meteorology denied the reports. However the next day, Mr Neely remained adamant that the radar was down during parts of the storm.

Mrs Hanna-Martin explained that the issue experienced with the radar was simply a matter of rebooting the monitor that projects the images from the radar. She added that the radar is not housed at the same facility where forecasters are stationed.

In the House of Assembly on Wednesday, Mrs Hanna-Martin advised that there was a break in radar transmission in July due to a software installation. Yesterday, Mr Basden also released verification logs indicating the six-day break period from July 15 to July 20.

The radar provides details on rainfall intensity, thunderstorms, and tornadic activity, including waterspouts effectively within a 150-mile range, Mrs Hanna Martin has said. Therefore, she said, the radar is best used by officials as a supplemental tool to satellite imagery, the lightning detection network and computer modelling from a variety of official international sources.

American expert Bob Dreisewerd told The Tribune last week that for the tool to be effective, the country needed at least two more radars.

Mr Dreisewerd, a meteorologist for 25 years and the chief development officer for Baron, a weather intelligence firm, said it was wise, though not necessary, for institutions to continually upgrade their radar technology.

The Bahamas’ current radar located at the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) was first attained in 2005.

Hurricane Joaquin formed as a tropical depression at 11pm on September 27. It lashed the southern and central Bahamas on October 1 and 2 as a category-four hurricane, and the country was given an all clear that it no longer posed a threat on October 3.

Mr Basden’s statement added: “Throughout this process, and as has been previously detailed, the Department of Meteorology issued the required alerts, watches and warnings necessary for keeping persons informed on the threat of Joaquin. The department takes this opportunity to reaffirm its full commitment to diligently observing and forecasting weather patterns in the interest of the Bahamian people.”