Hurricane Beryl, a dangerous category 3 storm, was inching close to the Carribbean and prompting warnings for residents to take shelter.
The first hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic season, Beryl earlier rapidly intensified into a category 4 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 130mph. However, on Monday morning, it weakened to category 3.
Beryl is expected to bring tropical storm-force winds and life-threatening storm surges to Barbados, St Vincent and Grenadine on Monday.
“This is a very serious situation developing for the Windward Islands,” the National Hurricane Centre warned.
“A life-threatening storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 6 to 9 feet above normal tide levels in areas of onshore flow near where the eye makes landfall in the hurricane warning area,” it said, adding the surge could also bring large and destructive waves to the coast.
As of 8pm ET, Beryl was approximately 200 miles southeast of Barbados, moving westward.
Tobago is under a red-level warning, the highest alert issued by the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Service.
“Shelter in place or evacuate to a safe location if your home is unsafe or vulnerable to flooding or wind damage,” the agency said in a notice to the public.
It asked residents to “secure food, water and medicine for at least seven days in waterproof containers”.
Hurricane warnings have also been issued for Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada.
The storm is anticipated to bring three to six inches of rain across these areas, potentially causing localised flooding.
The Dominican Republic has issued a tropical storm watch from Punta Palenque to the Haitian border, while Haiti’s entire south coast is under a similar watch.
Beryl has been strengthening quickly, with wind speeds increasing by 55 mph in the 24 hours before Sunday morning.
It is expected to pass just south of Barbados early on Monday and then head into the Caribbean Sea as a major hurricane on a path towards Jamaica.
In Barbados, all non-essential businesses were asked to close by 8.30pm on Sunday while Grenada shut its international airport at 6pm.
India’s T20 world-cup-winning cricket team is stuck in Barbados amid hurricane warnings and flight cancellations.
Several UK airlines are cancelling flights to and from the region, with one Virgin Atlantic plane departing from Barbados five hours early on Sunday to avoid the approaching storm.
Beryl is expected to remain a powerful hurricane as it moves into the eastern and central Caribbean and heads towards Mexico.
Coming right behind Beryl is hurricane Chris, which formed near eastern Mexico on Sunday but was expected to weaken after landfall.
Hurricanes are rare this early in the season. The average arrival date for the first hurricane is 11 August.
Scientists have warned that this could be the worst hurricane season in decades as warm ocean waters fuel more storms. Ocean heat in the Atlantic has been the highest on record for this time of year.
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