Climate change is reducing early wet season rainfall in Puerto Rico and Jamaica

The report finds that human-induced climate change has reduced rainfall in Jamaica by approximately 6% and in Puerto Rico by about 9%. These changes have increased the likelihood of severe effective precipitation events in both regions compared to a pre-industrial climate. The study highlights that warmer temperatures intensify drought severity through higher evaporation, making the 2026 early wet season rainfall deficits more frequent and severe.

• Human-induced climate change has caused a decrease in rainfall of approximately 6% in Jamaica and about 9% in Puerto Rico.
• The likelihood of experiencing an effective precipitation event similar to that of 2026 has increased by 40% in Jamaica and 30% in Puerto Rico compared to a cooler or pre-industrial climate.
• The 2026 drought conditions were rare, with the lowest rainfall event in Puerto Rico having a 50-year return period and a 30-year return period in Jamaica.
• Warmer temperatures have increased drought severity via higher evaporation; the effective precipitation event from May to July 2026 was a 15-year event in Puerto Rico and a 30-year event in Jamaica.
• Projections for a further +1.4C of warming suggest that rainfall for events of this rarity would decrease by another 10% across Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and the Lesser Antilles, with the likelihood of effective precipitation events increasing 3 times in Jamaica and 2.5 times in Puerto Rico.

APA

World Weather Attribution (2026). Climate change is reducing early wet season rainfall in Puerto Rico and Jamaica. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-is-reducing-early-wet-season-rainfall-in-puerto-rico-and-jamaica/

Chicago

World Weather Attribution. Climate change is reducing early wet season rainfall in Puerto Rico and Jamaica. 2026. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-is-reducing-early-wet-season-rainfall-in-puerto-rico-and-jamaica/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Weather Attribution |title=Climate change is reducing early wet season rainfall in Puerto Rico and Jamaica |date=28 August 2026 |url=https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-is-reducing-early-wet-season-rainfall-in-puerto-rico-and-jamaica/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldweatherattribution2026climate, author = {{World Weather Attribution}}, title = {{Climate change is reducing early wet season rainfall in Puerto Rico and Jamaica}}, institution = {World Weather Attribution}, year = {2026}, month = aug, url = {https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-is-reducing-early-wet-season-rainfall-in-puerto-rico-and-jamaica/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }