Image source, Getty Images
A powerful hurricane has hit Jamaica, bringing strong winds and torrential rain, damaging buildings and downing trees on the Caribbean island.
Beryl, a category four storm with winds of up to 215 km/h, hit the island’s south coast.
Photos on social media show flooded streets and blown-off roofs.
At least seven people have been killed so far as the storm sweeps across the Caribbean.
- Author, Vanessa Buschschlüter
- Role, BBC News
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“It’s terrible. Everything is gone. I’m at home and I’m scared,” Amoy Wellington, a resident of a rural community in the southern parish of St Elizabeth, was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency. “It’s a disaster.”
A hurricane warning is in effect in Jamaica, where authorities have imposed a curfew from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time (11 a.m. to 11 p.m. GMT).
Prime Minister Andrew Holness had earlier urged people to “take this hurricane seriously”.
“If you live in a low-lying area, an area historically prone to flooding and landslides, or if you live on the banks of a river or ravine, I implore you to evacuate to shelter or safer ground,” he said.
Three people died in Grenada, where the cyclone made landfall on Monday, one in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and three others in northern Venezuela, which was hit by strong winds and flooding.
About 90% of homes were destroyed or seriously damaged on Union Island, part of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
Some areas of Jamaica have already experienced disruptions to power and electricity supplies, with the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) saying it was forced to suspend the restoration of power lines in some locations for the safety of its workers.
At a press conference, NHC Director Dr Michael Brennan said Jamaica would experience “devastating hurricane-force winds.”
Rainfall in some parts of the country could reach 30cm, which could lead to flooding and mudslides, the director said, while potentially life-threatening storm surges of up to 2.7m above tide level are also expected.
“Everyone in Jamaica needs to be in a safe place and be prepared to stay there for at least the next 12 hours,” Dr Brennan warned.
The BBC’s Nick Davis said Jamaicans had rushed to supermarkets earlier this week to get “as much as they could, as quickly as they could”.
Jamaican Information Minister Dana Morris Dixon said the island had 900 shelters to house people who had to leave their homes.
Image source, Getty Images
In Venezuela, Hurricane Beryl caused heavy rains that caused a river to overflow its banks in the northern state of Sucre. Three people died and several are still missing.
A government delegation was hit by a falling tree while inspecting the damage.
President Nicolás Maduro said Vice President Delcy Rodríguez was among the injured. She was “very injured but conscious.”
In Mexico, where Hurricane Beryl is expected in the coming days, residents of Cancun rushed to supermarkets to stock up on supplies. Some found themselves faced with empty shelves.
The NHC said Hurricane Beryl formed much earlier than usual in the hurricane season.
Meteorologists also noticed how quickly Beryl developed.
The storm strengthened from a tropical depression to a major hurricane in 42 hours, hurricane expert Sam Lillo told The Associated Press.
Hurricane Beryl’s predicted path
In Texas, officials warned residents to prepare for the possibility of Beryl’s arrival this weekend.
On Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott urged residents along the state’s Atlantic coast to “keep an eye on the Gulf” and “have an emergency plan to take care of yourself and your loved ones.”
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned that the North Atlantic could see as many as seven major hurricanes this year, compared with an average of three per season.
