Hurricane Beryl has left at least six dead in the Caribbean As it continues to bring heavy rain, “life-threatening” winds and flooding to the region this week, forecasters warn it could remain at least a tropical storm as it heads toward Mexico.
The National Hurricane Center said in an update Tuesday that the storm, which remains a Category 5 and is currently in the Caribbean Sea, 175 102 miles southeast of the Dominican Republic, had sustained winds of nearly 165 mph, making it the strongest July hurricane on record, beating Emily from 2015. In an afternoon update, the center said maximum sustained winds had decreased slightly to 155 mph with higher gusts.
Three people were killed in Grenada, Two people killed in northeastern Venezuela One person was killed in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, authorities said, warning there could be more deaths. In Grenada, two people died on the island of Carriacou and one person died after a tree fell on a house on River Road.
Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said there were many downed power lines and roads that were impassable due to debris in the island nation.
“The situation is dire,” Dickon said. “There is no port. The houses and buildings on the island are almost completely destroyed.”
The NHC said Beryl is moving westward across the Caribbean at about 22 mph, which is expected to continue through Wednesday, when it is expected to pass near Jamaica. The hurricane will then approach the Cayman Islands on Thursday before reaching the Yucatan Peninsula overnight.
“Weakening is expected later today, but Beryl is still expected to be near major hurricane intensity as it moves toward the central Caribbean and passes near Jamaica on Wednesday and the Cayman Islands on Thursday,” the center said in an update Tuesday. “Additional weakening is expected thereafter, although Beryl is expected to remain a hurricane in the northwestern Caribbean.”
A video from the Bridgetown fishing resort in Barbados showed damage to vessels and debris scattered around the area. A tourist staying at a resort in Jamaica shared a video of sun loungers being blown into the pool by Beryl’s strong winds.
Jamaica has upgraded its hurricane warning from a hurricane watch to a hurricane warning, and Prime Minister Andrew Holness urged people to prepare and He also warned that emergency services would not be able to respond at the height of the hurricane.
“We are facing an imminent catastrophe and we must treat it with the seriousness that it requires,” Holness said. “We will experience adverse weather effects, whether it is a direct hit or an oblique hit… and therefore, everyone must prepare mentally now.”
Much of the Caribbean is bracing for significant damage this week. Jamaica remains under a hurricane warning, with heavy rain and flooding likely on Wednesday.
High tide could reach 1.5 to 2.5 metres above normal tide levels in Jamaica, with up to 30 centimetres of rain possible in that region and in the southwestern Haitian peninsula by Wednesday. In the Cayman Islands, where there is also a hurricane warning, high tide could raise water levels 60 to 1.20 metres above normal.
Beryl’s effects could even reach the U.S. mainland, with minor coastal flooding in southeast Texas or southwest Louisiana, according to the National Weather Service’s local office in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Additional impacts are possible if the hurricane moves farther north than expected.
Tropical storm warnings are in effect for southern Hispaniola – the island that includes Haiti and the Dominican Republic – while a hurricane watch is in place for the southern coast of Haiti.
Beryl is the first Category 4 or higher hurricane to make landfall in June and the first Category 4 storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. It is also the strongest hurricane to pass through the Windward Islands, which include Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, and Martinique.
