The Caribbean Beryl-Arctic Hurricane, the First Atlantic Hurricane of a Category 5 on record, is a Serendipity Threat to Jamaica
At least two people were killed as part of the damage that was caused by the storm in the Caribbean. It now boasts maximum sustained winds around 160 miles per hour as it tracks a course toward Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.
Beryl has put up some eyepopping numbers in recent days, with warm ocean water allowing it to quickly gain strength after becoming a tropical depression on Friday. When it blossomed into a Category 4 storm on Sunday, it became the first Atlantic hurricane on record to attain that status in June.
According to the NHC, there is a high risk of death or injury to people due to flying and falling debris. All of the manufactured homes that were built before 1994 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.
Despite passing south of Barbados, Barbados Meteorological Services Director Sabu Best said in an update early Monday that wind gusts were dangerously strong, from 50 up to 70 mph, urging residents to stay inside until an “all clear” has been announced. Rainfall, he added, had not been as bad as expected.
According to the NHC, the hurricanes is currently heading west- northwest through the Windward Islands before going across the central and southeastern Caribbean Sea.
On its current forecast path, the earliest tropical storm-force winds are expected to hit Central America Wednesday night. Mexico’s coastal states of Quintana Roos and Yucatan will likely feel those winds on Thursday.
Near-record warm ocean temperatures in the Atlantic were cited as one reason National Weather Service forecasters have predicted an unusually active Atlantic hurricane season, with up to 25 named storms.
The intensely powerful storm was upgraded to a Category 5 hurricane Monday night, making it the earliest Atlantic hurricane of that strength on record.
“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 to be calculated and strategic in our approach. 48 hours is how long we have to prepare.
The National Hurricane Center said that all of Jamaica remained under a hurricane warning and that there would be more storms in the area.
On Tuesday morning after the storm had passed, Dickon Mitchell said the nation was coming to grips with the reality of the destruction caused by the storm. He said there were at least two deaths that had been reported.
Mitchell spoke to a local official on the islands and they were very sad about the situation. There is no power. The island has almost completely destroyed homes and buildings. The roads are not passable, and in many instances they are cut off because of the large quantity of debris strewn all over the streets.”