Hurricane Beryl approaches Caribbean islands as a “highly dangerous” Category 4 storm
Hurricane Beryl, an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm, was nearing the Windward Islands in the southeast Caribbean, according to the National Hurricane Center on Sunday night. Forecasters warned that the first major hurricane of the Atlantic season would bring life-threatening winds and storm surge to the Windward Islands early Monday.
As of 11 p.m. ET, Beryl was approximately 150 miles southeast of Barbados, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph and moving west at 20 mph.
Hurricane warnings were issued for Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Tobago. Martinique was under a tropical storm warning, while Dominica and Trinidad had a tropical storm watch in effect.
“This is a very serious situation developing for the Windward Islands,” warned the Miami-based National Hurricane Center, predicting Beryl would bring life-threatening winds and storm surge as it moved across the Windward Islands early Monday as a Category 4 hurricane, continuing through the southeastern Caribbean Monday night and Tuesday.
Two hurricane hunters were dispatched to gather more details about Beryl’s intensity. It took Beryl only 42 hours to strengthen from a tropical depression to a major hurricane, a feat achieved only six other times in Atlantic history, with the earliest instance recorded on September 1, according to hurricane expert Sam Lillo.
Beryl is now the third Category 3 hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic in June, following Audrey in 1957 and Alma in 1966, noted hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry.
“Beryl is an extremely dangerous and rare hurricane for this time of year in this area,” Lowry told the Associated Press. “Unusual is an understatement. Beryl is already a historic hurricane, and it hasn’t struck yet.”
The last strongest hurricane to hit the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan in 2004, which caused catastrophic damage in Grenada as a Category 3 storm.
“So this is a serious threat, a very serious threat,” Lowry emphasized.
Beryl is the second named storm in what is predicted to be a busy hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30 in the Atlantic. Last week, Tropical Storm Alberto caused torrential flooding in parts of southern Texas and northeastern Mexico, resulting in at least four deaths in the Mexican states of Nuevo Leon and Veracruz.
CBS News weather producer David Parkinson noted that Beryl is the farthest east a hurricane has formed in June, and one of only two to do so east of the Caribbean, with the other instance occurring in 1933. Parkinson expects Beryl to remain south of Jamaica, with any U.S. impacts still at least eight days away.
Warm waters are fueling Beryl, with ocean heat content in the deep Atlantic being the highest on record for this time of year, according to Brian McNoldy, a University of Miami tropical meteorology researcher.
Forecasters warned of a life-threatening storm surge of up to 9 feet in areas where Beryl will make landfall, with up to 6 inches of rain expected in Barbados and nearby islands.
Long lines formed at gas stations and grocery stores in Barbados and other islands as residents prepared for the rapidly intensifying storm, which escalated from a tropical storm with 35 mph winds on Friday to a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday.
“We need to be ready,” Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley urged in a public address on Friday. “It is better to plan for the worst and pray for the best.”
Thousands of people were in Barbados for the Twenty20 World Cup cricket final, with India beating South Africa in Bridgetown on Saturday, considered cricket’s biggest event.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves also urged residents to prepare, announcing that shelters would open Sunday evening and instructing officials to refuel government vehicles while asking stores and gas stations to stay open later. “Please take this very seriously and prepare yourselves,” Gonsalves warned. “This is a terrible hurricane.”
Caribbean leaders were also preparing for a cluster of thunderstorms trailing Beryl, which had a 70% chance of becoming a tropical depression.
“Do not let your guard down,” Mottley emphasized.
The National Hurricane Center noted that the season’s first hurricane typically forms in early to mid-August, making Beryl unusual for reaching hurricane strength so early. A recent NOAA report predicted an “above average” hurricane season, with 17 to 25 storms, 8 to 13 hurricanes, and 4 to 7 major hurricanes of category 3 or higher. An average Atlantic hurricane season sees 14 named storms, seven hurricanes, and three major hurricanes.
A tropical storm is defined as a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph, while a hurricane has maximum sustained winds greater than 74 mph.