Officials are warning residents to seek shelter as Hurricane Beryl makes its way towards the southeast Caribbean. The Category 3 storm is expected to bring powerful winds and swells to the area.
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has cautioned that Beryl, currently located about 110 miles southeast of Barbados in the Atlantic Ocean, remains a dangerous major hurricane as it moves through the Windward Islands into the eastern Caribbean.
Beryl was previously rated as a Category 4 storm, with experts noting that such early and powerful storms are rare during the Atlantic hurricane season, which typically runs from early June to late November.
Michael Lowry, a hurricane expert, shared on social media that only five major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher have been recorded in the Atlantic before the first week of July. Beryl would be the sixth and the earliest to form this far east in the tropical Atlantic.
The islands of Saint Vincent, the Grenadines, and Grenada are at the highest risk of facing the core of the storm early Monday, with potentially catastrophic wind damage expected. Various islands, including Barbados, Saint Lucia, and Tobago, are under hurricane warnings, while others are under tropical storm warnings or watches.
Authorities have declared a state of emergency in Tobago, with schools closed and an island-wide curfew imposed. Residents across the region are urged to seek shelter and prepare for the storm’s impact.
The Caribbean regional bloc CARICOM postponed a meeting in Grenada due to the hurricane, as countries in the path of Beryl brace for the devastating winds and potential damage.
In preparation for the storm, residents in Bridgetown, Barbados, have been seen stocking up on supplies, fueling up their vehicles, and boarding up their properties. Beryl became the first hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic season, quickly intensifying to a Category 4, a first for June, based on NHC records.
– Devastating wind damage –
A Category 3 or higher hurricane is considered major, with sustained winds of at least 130 mph. Beryl’s winds were estimated at 130 mph, and it is expected to remain strong as it moves across the Caribbean.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned of an “extraordinary” hurricane season, with up to seven Category 3 or higher storms expected. Climate change has been linked to the increase in severe weather events like hurricanes, making them more frequent and devastating in recent years.
bur-st-mlm/rsc/bfm/des/dw/sn-fox
