The powerful Hurricane was barreling toward Jamaica
Protect Your Eyes Against Viscous Winds in the Grenadine Islands During the Monday’s Category 3 Storm: How Many Homes will Be Destroyed?
“This is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation. Take action to protect your life. Ahead of the Monday’s storm, the center said. People in the Grenadine Islands should stay in their shelter because the winds will rapidly increase within the eyewall.
Beryl weakened slightly to a Category 3 storm early Monday, but meteorologists predicted it would likely gain power again after an eyewall replacement took place in that same timeframe.
The NHC says there is a high risk of injury or death to people and animals due to flying and falling debris. “Nearly all older (pre-1994) manufactured homes will be destroyed. A high percentage of newer manufactured homes also will be destroyed,” and poorly built homes could see all of their walls collapse.
Barbados warned against a tropical hurricane on Monday night after Beryl had passed onto the island of Carriacou and Petite Martinique
The director of the weather service in Barbados said in an update that wind gusts from 50 to 70 mph were dangerous, and residents should stay indoors until the weather clears. He said the rain had not been as bad as expected.
After passing through the Windward Islands, the storm is expected to head across the southeastern and central Caribbean sea, the NHC said.
Tropical storm force winds are expected to hit Central America Wednesday night. Mexico’s coastline is likely to feel those winds on Thursday.
Powerful storms are more common as a result of climate change. Warming ocean temperatures due to the greenhouse gasses are helping to drive the upcoming Atlantic hurricane season which is expected to be an intense one, with as many as 17 to 25 named storms.
The storm became the earliest Atlantic Hurricane to reach a Category 5 designation when it hit Monday night.
“I’m encouraging all Jamaicans to take the hurricane as a serious threat,” Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said in a video message Monday. “It is however not a time for panic. It’s a good time for us to be very calculated in our approach. We have 48 hours in which to prepare.”
All of Jamaica remained under a hurricane warning on Tuesday, meaning that meteorologists expect hurricane conditions to occur in the area and “preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion,” the National Hurricane Center said.
On Tuesday morning after Beryl had passed, Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said the nation was “coming to grips with the reality of the devastation” caused by the storm, particularly in the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique. He said at least two deaths had been tentatively reported.
Mitchell spoke to a local official on the islands about the situation. “There is no power. There is almost complete destruction of homes and buildings on the island. The roads are not safe, and many are cut off because of the large quantities of debris strewn all over the streets.
Tropical Cyclone Beryl, which is the earliest Atlantic Hurricane to reach a Category 5 designation, has weakened to a Category 3 storm. The winds will rapidly increase within the eyewall, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. Barbados warned against a tropical hurricane on Monday after Beryl had passed onto the island of Carriacou and Petite Martinique.