Hurricane Beryl Kills at Least 6 as it Remains a Threat

Hurricane Beryl is not losing steam as it roars through the Caribbean at a fast clip. Here is the latest information on this major Category 4 storm.

The Rundown on Beryl

Jamaica is beginning to feel the impacts of Hurricane Beryl. As of Wednesday morning, the storm is packing sustained winds of 145 mph as it moves to the west-northwest with a speed of 18 mph. The dangerous storm is going to continue its track across the Caribbean in the coming days, putting lives and property at risk as it inches closer to the U.S.

Beryl first made landfall on the Grenada island of Carriacou on Monday as a powerful Category 4 storm with wind speeds of 150 mph. At least six fatalities throughout the Caribbean and into Venezuela have been blamed on the storm. Beryl is now distinguished as the most powerful hurricane on the record books to track through the Windward Islands so early in the season. After briefly reaching the status of a Category 5 storm, Beryl is also now the first storm to hit winds of 165 mph this early in the season in the Atlantic.

Although the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has given the all clear to the Atlantic coast of the U.S., there is still a chance that the Texas Gulf Coast could see the impacts of this storm by the end of the weekend. Forecasters will be closely monitoring the track of the storm in the coming days.

Hurricane Beryl's History

Beryl rushed through the Windward Islands on Monday inflicting widespread damage as a Category 4 storm. The worst of the impacts landed across the small islands located south of St. Vincent and the landmasses to the north of Grenada. The hurricane eye moved over the island of Carriacou at 11:10 AST Monday.

Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said that Carriacou was “flattened” in a period of just 30 minutes. Power has been knocked out to the island, hampering the cleanup efforts. Significant damage has also been confirmed on the island of Petite Martinique and throughout parts of Barbados.

Beryl reached the status of a monster Category 5 storm by Monday evening as it moved over the warm ocean waters and picked up more intensity. Sustained winds were measured at 165 mph on Monday night. While the storm has weakened slightly since that time, it is still a force to be reckoned with as it churns closer to Jamaica. The good news is that the storm skirted past Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, sparing these communities.

In addition to the ocean waters that are trending warmer than usual for this time of the year, a light amount of wind shear is working to keep the storm alive. This wind shear is forecast to increase late Wednesday, serving to weaken the storm later in the week. Until then, Jamaica is bracing for the direct impacts in the coming hours.