Hurricane Beryl reinforced to Category 5 position after it tore doors, windows, and roofs off homes across the southeastern Caribbean with overwhelming winds and hurricane surges powered by the Atlantic’s record warmth. Beryl made landfall on the island of Carriacou in Grenada as the initial Class 4 storm in the Atlantic, then late that day the National Hurricane Center in Miami informed its winds had augmented to Class 5 strength. Variations in strength, and later a substantial weakening, were forecast as the storm traveled further into the Caribbean.
Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said one individual had died and he could not so far say if there were other deaths because authorities had not assessed the condition on the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, where there was early information of major harm but communications were mostly down. We do hope there is no other loss of life or any injuries, he said. But keep in mind the test we have in Carriacou and Petite Martinique. Mitchel further stated that the government will direct people first opportunity to assess the situation on the islands.
Streets of St. Lucia island south of Grenada were scattered with shoes, trees, downed power lines, and other wreckage. Banana trees were shattered in half and cows lay deceased in green grasslands with homes made of tin and plywood slanting dangerously nearby. I am heartbroken, said Vichelle Clark King as she surveyed her destroyed shop in the Barbadian capital of Bridgetown which was full of sand and water. Beryl reached Class 5 strength late Monday and strengthened further early Tuesday morning to 165 mph (270 kph) winds. Beryl was around 445 miles (715 kilometers) east-southeast of Isla Beata in the Dominican Republic and was touching west-northwest at 22 mph (35 kph). A hurricane cautioning was in effect for Jamaica, and a tropical hurricane cautioning for the southern coast of Hispaniola, the island common to Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Variations were probable but Beryl was likely to stay close to major hurricane strength as it enthused into the central Caribbean and passed close to Jamaica on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. However, substantial weakening was anticipated. The previous strong hurricane to enter the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan 20 roughly years ago, which killed dozens of individuals in Grenada. On Monday afternoon, officials established information of devastation from Carriacou and nearby islands, said Terence Walters, Grenada’s national disaster manager. Itchell said he would enter Carriacou as soon as it was safe. In Barbados, Wilfred Abrahams, minister of home affairs and information, informed, that drones — which are quicker than troops fanning across the island — would evaluate damage once Beryl passed.
