Hurricane Beryl is approaching Jamaica as residents prepare for the powerful Category 4 storm, which has already killed at least seven people and caused significant damage in the southeast Caribbean
Hurricane Beryl is hurtling towards Jamaica, with locals scrambling to prepare for the formidable Category 4 storm that has already claimed at least seven lives and wreaked significant havoc in the southeast Caribbean.
The US National Hurricane Centre's maps reveal the path of destruction that the lethal storm will continue to carve, passing through Jamaica. It will then approach the Cayman Islands before heading into Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, home to the popular holiday city of Cancun.
The agency has issued a stark warning that "devastating hurricane-force winds, life-threatening storm surge, and damaging waves" are anticipated in Jamaica this afternoon. The Cayman Islands are set to endure a similar onslaught early on Thursday.
Residents have been urged to heed the advice of local emergency management officials regarding evacuation orders. Throughout today, "life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides from heavy rainfall" are expected across much of Jamaica and southern Haiti.
Despite predictions that Beryl will weaken slightly over the next couple of days, tropical storm warnings have been issued in the Yucatan Peninsula and Belize, where Beryl is expected to strike late Thursday. According to the US National Hurricane Centre, there remains "uncertainty" over the path and intensity of Beryl as it travels over the Western Gulf of Mexico this weekend.
Late on Monday, Beryl escalated into the earliest Category 5 hurricane in Atlantic history, reaching peak winds of 165mph (270 kph) on Tuesday before downgrading to a still destructive Category 4. Early Wednesday, the storm was located approximately 185 miles (300 kilometres) east-southeast of Kingston, boasting maximum sustained winds of 145mph (230 kph) and moving west-northwest at 20 mph (31 kph), according to the centre.
Officials in Jamaica are urging residents in flood-prone areas to prepare for evacuation. "I am encouraging all Jamaicans to take the hurricane as a serious threat," Prime Minister Andrew Holness stated in a public address on Tuesday.
"It is, however, not a time to panic." In Miami, US National Hurricane Centre Director Michael Brennan indicated that Jamaica seems to be directly in Beryl's path. He advised residents to find a safe shelter and remain there through Wednesday.
"We are most concerned about Jamaica, where we are expecting the core of a major hurricane to pass near or over the island," he expressed during an online briefing. A storm surge of 6-9 feet (1.8 to 2.7 meters) above typical tide levels is likely in Jamaica.
A tropical storm warning has also been issued for the entire southern coast of Hispaniola, an island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. As Hurricane Beryl tore through the Caribbean Sea, rescue teams in the southeastern islands were mobilised to gauge the havoc wreaked on Carriacou, an island belonging to Grenada.
Officials have confirmed three deaths in Grenada and Carriacou, with another fatality in St.Vincent and the Grenadines.
Two additional casualties were reported in northern Venezuela, where five individuals are still unaccounted for. The heavy downpours from Beryl have also impacted roughly 25,000 residents in this region.
Environment Minister Kerryne James disclosed that one of the fatalities in Grenada was a result of a tree collapsing onto a house. She highlighted that Carriacou and Petit Martinique bore the brunt of the destruction, with a multitude of homes and businesses obliterated in Carriacou.
On Tuesday, Grenada's Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell declared that electricity was down, roads were blocked, and the possibility of a rising death count "remains a grim reality." Ralph Gonsalves, the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, has vowed to restore the archipelago.
He revealed that Union Island saw 90% of its homes decimated and predicted "similar levels of devastation" on the islands of Myreau and Canouan. The last catastrophic hurricane to hit the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan two decades ago, which resulted in dozens of fatalities in Grenada.