All of Jamaica was about to feel the power of Hurricane Beryl on Wednesday as the eye of the Category 4 storm approached the island of 3 million people, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in its 2 p.m. ET advisory.
The hurricane's outer bands had lashed Jamaica earlier Wednesday after hurtling across warm waters in the Caribbean, forcing millions to brace for a massive storm that devastated the southern Windward Islands earlier this week. By early afternoon, Beryl and its 140-mph winds had closed to within 45 miles of the Jamaican capital of Kingston.
Beryl is forecast to pass over Jamaica as a major hurricane before unloading "devastating hurricane-force winds, life-threatening storm surge and damaging waves" across the Cayman Islands as early as Wednesday night, according to the NHC.
The storm is projected to drench Jamaica with 4 to 8 inches of rain, and 12 inches are forecast in some places, which could cause "life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides," the NHC said. On the coast, storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 6 to 9 feet. Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared all of Jamaica a "disaster area" and imposed an islandwide curfew Wednesday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Haiti is expected to get 4 to 6 inches of rain Wednesday, triggering flash-flood and mudslide warnings. The Cayman Islands could get up to half a foot of rain through Thursday. Weather officials are also warning about life-threatening surf and rip currents along the southern coasts of Puerto Rico, Hispaniola and Jamaica.
Forecasters say Beryl will remain a hurricane later this week, when it's projected to pass over the Yucatan Peninsula on Friday and emerge over the Gulf of Mexico.
On Monday, Beryl made landfall in Grenada's Carriacou island as a Category 4 hurricane, ravaging the southern Caribbean Islands, flattening hundreds of buildings and causing the deaths of at least six people. On Monday night, Beryl became the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record. Driven by record hot ocean temperatures, Beryl's rapid strengthening has stunned experts.
Developments:
∎ National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said hurricane-force winds were “just off shore” of the eastern tip of Jamaica. He described the conditions as "extremely dangerous."
∎ The Meteorological Service of Mexico issued a hurricane warning for the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula from Puerto Costa Maya to Cancun, a popular tourist destination, according to the NHC. Tropical storm warnings were also issued for other parts of the Yucatan Peninsula.
∎ At least four people have died on smaller islands in the eastern Caribbean after Beryl reached Carriacou on Monday, officials said. Heavy rainfall also affected northern Venezuela, where officials reported two deaths.
Hurricane Beryl tracker: See projected path of storm
Portions of South Texas are now within the forecast cone of Hurricane Beryl , which meteorologists say could arrive to the state over the weekend or early Monday.
However, forecasters remain unsure of what Beryl will do and how strong it will be as it approaches the Gulf Coast after hitting Mexico: "High uncertainty remains with both the track and intensity of Beryl," the National Weather Service said Wednesday.
"From Panama City, Florida to New Orleans, there is a low risk of direct impacts from Beryl, but from about Corpus Christi to Brownsville, Texas, the risk increases significantly due to the potential for Beryl to have more direct impacts," AccuWeather meteorologist Jonathan Porter said. "That southern portion of the Texas coast is the zone we have to really watch."
Coastal threats could begin this weekend, Weather.com warned: "Well ahead of Beryl, onshore winds could lead to increasing surf, rip currents and coastal flooding along parts of the Gulf Coast from eastern Mexico to Texas and western Louisiana beginning as soon as Saturday, and continuing until just after Beryl's final landfall, Weather.com said. The rip current threat could also even extend farther east along the northern Gulf Coast.
Brennan said Tuesday that "folks in the Texas coast, as we go into the holiday weekend, you're going to want to make sure you check back on the forecast and make sure you're ready for any potential impact. If we were to see tropical storm conditions affect those areas in the far western Gulf of Mexico, it could be during the day Saturday."
– Doyle Rice
The coming hurricane doesn't scare scare Tamar Atkinson, the manager of a small resort in Hanover, a community on Jamaica's northwest coast.
"The way I look at it, I can't stop it," she told USA TODAY. "If the hurricane is going to blow your house down, it's going to blow the house down."
Atkinson, 42, who moved back to Hanover a year ago after she lived in the U.S. for 20 years, already has her sea legs in weathering Jamaica's hurricanes. She remembers facing Hurricane Gilbert, a Category 5, as a little girl – the storm blew the roof off her aunt's house, where she sheltered, but left her mother's house in "perfect condition."
When Hurricane Ivan hit two decades ago, Atkinson sheltered at a nearby school. Once again, the storm blew out the school's windows, but left Atkinson's house untouched.
"I'm not leaving my house, and I'm not going to go crazy like the rest of the people," she said, adding that she's told her guests to "relax their nerve."
The Jamaica Tourist Board announced Wednesday that the Sangster, Norman Manley and Ian Fleming international airports were closed as Hurricane Beryl approaches the island.
Jamaica's travel website, VisitJamaica.com, doesn't list a reopening time for the airports and encouraged travelers to contact their travel agents and/or airlines for flight updates. The website also encourages travelers to heed any instructions from their hotel or private accommodation on sheltering.
"We also encourage you to register with your Embassy for country specific guidance and support," the board said on the website.
The U.S. Embassy in Jamaica is open on a limited basis and encouraged Americans to not visit the embassy for shelter and instead seek a government-run shelter. Citizens in Jamaica are encouraged to call the embassy at (876) 702-6486 if they need assistance.
– Krystal Nurse
Donae Maye stocked up on water, candles and food earlier this week, before supermarkets across her hometown of Montego Bay, a city on Jamaica's northern Coast, emptied.
"There was no bread, no essentials that you actually need, no candles, very few tin products," she said on Wednesday, after a recent visit to some local grocery stores.
Maye, 27, also prepped her home, where she will shelter with her fiance, her son and his father. "We cleared away any trees that might be blocking any electrical wires and stuff like that that might fall and break the window," she said.
She's confident that her house, which is made of concrete, will stand up to the storm better than many buildings did to Hurricane Ivan 20 years ago. Back then, more structures were made of board, which didn't fare well in the storm, she said. Today, "most structures are built to withstand the winds and the hurricane," she said.
Among the parts of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and surrounding areas under hurricane warnings were Cancun and the island of Cozumel, two popular tourist destinations packed with luxury resorts and cruise ship ports.
The hurricane warnings were issued by the Meteorological Service of Mexico as forecasters warned residents and tourists of the projected impact of Hurricane Beryl.
Brennan, the director of the NHC, said in a YouTube livestream on Wednesday that the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, including Cancun, faces 3 to 5 feet of storm surge as well as up to 8 inches of rain.
The record-breaking hurricane is expected to make landfall along the Yucatan Peninsula on Thursday night or early Friday, NHC said.
Cecilia Garcia and her family initially planned to weather the beginning of the hurricane in the bathroom of their hotel room in Ocho Rios, on Jamaica's northern coastline. "We do have windows in our room, so I think the safest option would probably be to go in our restroom," she said.
Moon Palace Jamaica, where Garcia, 25, is staying with her parents, brother, sister and two kids, told hotel guests to evacuate to a ballroom. When Garcia and her family first visited the shelter, they found it too chaotic. "We ended up back in our room because it was very crowded," she said. "It was very hot in there."
But later on Wednesday morning, as the winds picked up, the family returned to the packed ballroom, where thin cots were arranged in rows, according to a video Garcia shared with USA TODAY.
Garcia and her family's flight back to their home of Houston, Texas, isn't until Saturday – the hurricane will strike at the midpoint of their week-long vacation. Garcia said if they chose to end their stay earlier, they wouldn't get a refund.
Looking out at skies still partially clear on Wednesday morning, Garcia said the family was keeping calm ahead of the storm. "We're kind of used to bad weather and floods like that in Houston," she said. "But again, it's different when you're not at home, so that's the only scary part."
Hurricane Beryl was 45 miles southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and 320 miles east-southeast of the Cayman Islands, moving at a speed of 18 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
It’s expected to begin unleashing hurricane conditions across Jamaica around midday before reaching the Cayman Islands Wednesday night or early Thursday, NHC said.
Early Friday, Beryl is expected to move over Belize and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, bringing flash floods with 2 to 6 inches of rain forecast and up to 8 inches possible in some area. Meanwhile, storm surge could raise water levels by 3 to 5 feet, according to NHC.
NHC forecasters said more models are showing Beryl restrengthening as it enters the Gulf of Mexico this weekend. Their official forecast now shows Beryl becoming a hurricane before making landfall along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
While there's still "significant uncertainty" about where exactly the storm will go, experts with AccuWeather warned that the chances of direct impacts along portions of the U.S. Gulf Coast and Texas "are increasing ."
Mona Parhar, 23, and Arezoo Rafkhani, 24, didn't start searching for early return flights from their vacation to Jamaica until Tuesday night, less than 24 hours before Hurricane Beryl was expected to sweep across the island. By then, they learned airports had closed.
"We really have no choice but to stick it out," Parhar said on Wednesday from their hotel room at the Hotel Riu in Montego Bay on the island's northern side.
The two Toronto natives booked their trip to celebrate their recent graduations – Rafkhani from Toronto Metropolitan University and Parhar from York University. "We've never experienced something like this as Canadians," Rafkhani said. "It's kind of nerve-wracking."
The pair were comforted by the hotel staff, who kept guests informed and safe. "Since last night, they've been sending us messages about how to get prepared, what they're doing and will be doing this morning," Rafkhani said. "They've been keeping us calm," Parhar said.
Jamaican officials warned residents to stock up on food, batteries, candles, and drinking water. Residents in flood-prone areas were also advised to prepare for evacuation.
"Secure your critical documents and remove any trees or items that could endanger your property," the Office of the Prime Minister in Jamaica said on X on Tuesday. "Everyone, including those living alone, should take these necessary steps now."
As a precaution, Jamaica's Prime Minister Andrew Holness said Tuesday night that electricity and water services will likely be shut off "if the storm reaches a serious threshold" to prevent fires and protect equipment.
"Only one hurricane has ever affected Jamaica during July," according to AccuWeather meteorologist Jesse Ferrell. "Category 4 Hurricane Dennis in 2005 did not make landfall but killed one person and caused a lot of damage."
Record-breaking path: Hurricane Beryl tears through the Caribbean
Forecasters have projected 2024 to be one of the busiest hurricane seasons on record. Beryl has already surprised forecasters and broken records since it formed, including becoming the earliest Category 4 or 5 storm on record.
Beryl broke the previous record set by Hurricane Emily on July 17, 2005 for the strongest Category 5 hurricane. Beryl rapidly strengthened from a tropical storm to a major hurricane in about 48 hours.
The storm is also the earliest Category 4 or larger storm by more than a week, breaking the record set by Hurricane Dennis, a Category 4 storm on July 8, 2005.
It was fueled by much warmer than normal ocean temperatures in the Atlantic and aided in that development by light winds that allowed it to build a strong inner core.
— Jennifer Borresen, Dinah Voyles Pulver and Ramon Padilla
Hurricane Beryl tracker: See projected path of Category 5 storm
Beryl hit St. Vincent and the Grenadines especially hard, according to Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.
"The hurricane has come and gone, and it has left in its wake immense destruction," he said, adding that Union Island had 90% of homes "severely damaged or destroyed."
After making landfall in Grenada's Carriacou Island on Monday, strong winds and high water levels smashed fishing boats in Barbados, downed power lines in Grenada and St. Vincent, and knocked out drinking water in St. Lucia, according to officials.
Grenada's Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell noted on Tuesday that the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique were significantly impacted by the hurricane. In addition to downed power lines, roads were also remained impassable and fuel stations were destroyed.
"The situation is grim. There is no power. There is almost complete destruction of homes and buildings," Mitchell said.
Contributing: Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY; Reuters ; Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY Network-Florida
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Eye of 'dangerous' Hurricane Beryl approaching Jamaica: Live updates
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