Beryl strengthened into a hurricane on Saturday as it moved toward the southeastern Caribbean, with forecasters warning it could become a major and dangerous storm before reaching Barbados late Sunday or early Monday.
A major hurricane is considered Category 3 or greater, with winds of at least 178 km/h.
As of mid-Saturday afternoon, Beryl was a Category 1 hurricane, marking the easternmost point where a hurricane has formed in the tropical Atlantic in June, according to Philip Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University.
A hurricane warning was issued for Barbados and a hurricane watch was in effect for Saint Lucia, Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
A tropical storm watch has been issued for Martinique, Dominica and Tobago Island.
Michael Lowry, a Florida-based hurricane expert, posted on the social network X that it is “astonishing to see a major hurricane (Category 3 or greater) forecast for June anywhere in the Atlantic, let alone this far east in the deep tropics.” He added that “Beryl is rapidly organizing over the warmest waters on record for late June.”
The center of Beryl was expected to pass about 45 kilometers south of Barbados, said Sabu Best, director of the island’s weather service. Forecasters then expected the storm to move across the Caribbean towards Jamaica and possibly Mexico.
The center of Beryl is expected to pass about 45 kilometers south of Barbados, said Sabu Best, director of the island’s weather service.
On Saturday, Beryl was located about 1,260 kilometers east-southeast of Barbados, with maximum winds of 100 km/h. It was moving west at 37 km/h.
“Rapid strengthening is now expected,” the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.
Warm waters feed Beryl, with ocean heat content in the deep Atlantic the highest on record for this time of year, according to Brian McNoldy, a tropical meteorology researcher at the University of Miami.
Beryl is also the strongest tropical storm on record in June in this far eastern tropical Atlantic, noted Philip Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University.
“We must be ready,” Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley said in a public speech Friday evening. “You and I know that when these things happen, it’s best to plan for the worst and pray for the best. »
She said thousands of people were in Barbados for the Cricket World Cup final in which India and South Africa will face off on Saturday in the capital of Bridgetown.
“A life or death situation”
Meanwhile, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said in a public address Saturday that shelters would open Sunday night and urged people to prepare. He ordered officials to fill up the gas tanks of government vehicles and asked grocery stores and gas stations to stay open later, ahead of the storm.
“There will be a rush […] “If you limit the opening hours,” he said, apologising in advance for the government’s interruptions to radio stations to broadcast storm updates. “Cricket fans have to accept that we have to give information […] it’s a life or death situation. »
Beryl is the second named storm in what is expected to be a busy hurricane season, which runs from 1er June to November 30 in the Atlantic. Earlier this month, Tropical Storm Alberto hit northeastern Mexico with heavy rains that left four people dead.
Lowry said only five named storms formed in the tropical Atlantic east of the Caribbean. Of these, only one hurricane formed in the eastern Caribbean in June.
Mark Spence, a hostel manager in Barbados, said in a telephone interview that he was calm about the coming storm.
” It’s the season. You can have a storm at any time, he said. I am always ready. I always have enough food at home. »
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that the 2024 hurricane season will have between 17 and 25 named storms. Forecasts call for up to 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.
In an average Atlantic hurricane season, there are normally 14 named storms, including seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
Up to 15 centimetres of rain was expected to fall in Barbados and neighbouring islands. A warning of waves of up to four metres was in effect. A storm surge of up to two metres was also forecast.
The storm is approaching the southeastern Caribbean just days after Trinidad and Tobago reported significant flooding in its capital, Port of Spain, following another weather event.
Caribbean leaders are not only worried about Beryl, but also about a group of storms closely following its path that have a 70 percent chance of developing into a tropical depression by the middle of next week.
Meanwhile, an unnamed storm in early June dumped more than 50 centimeters of rain on parts of South Florida, leaving many motorists stranded in flooded streets and pushing water toward some homes in the low areas.