Rising sea level and increasing tropical cyclone frequency are threatening the population of San Andres Island, Colombia, western Caribbean

The Colombian island of San Andres is a popular tourist destination located about 195 km offshore of the east coast of Nicaragua in the southwestern Caribbean Sea. Together with Providencia and Santa Catalina, San Andres is part of the UNESCO Seaflower Biosphere Reserve. With a 26 km(2) surface area and 78 000 inhabitants, San Andres is one of the most densely populated islands in the Caribbean with on average similar to 3000 inhabitants/km(2). The majority of the population and the mass tourism are concentrated in the low-elevation (0.5-6 m) areas, particularly in the north and along the east coast of the island. These areas are prone to flooding during storm events such as hurricanes Eta and Iota in 2020. A review of the geological, environmental and the socio-economic situation of the island, and the record of tropical cyclones since 1911, shows why the local population has become increasingly vulnerable to storm events and rising sea level. Tropical cyclones may form locally in the southwestern Caribbean or originate in the eastern Caribbean/Atlantic Ocean. The latter tend to be stronger and cause more damage when they reach San Andres. The HURDAT2 dataset shows that the frequency of storm events affecting San Andres has increased in recent decades, with six storms over the past 20 years, including three category 4-5 hurricanes since 2007. Increasing storm frequency and intensity may be linked to increasing sea surface temperatures caused by anthropogenic global warming, although the changes described here may be limited to a relatively small geographical region, as opposed to representing basin wide tropical cyclone behavior. The growing population density since the 1950s has augmented the potential for disaster.

Automated summary

The Colombian island of San Andres is facing increasing vulnerability to storm events and rising sea levels, which pose a threat to its popular tourism industry. The growing population density on the island since the 1950s has augmented the potential for disaster.