Hurricane Beryl barrels toward Jamaica as category 5 storm after ‘flattening’ Grenada island: Live

Record-warm ocean temperatures gave Hurricane Beryl the strength to grow from a tropical depression to a Category 4 storm in a matter of days.

“Beryl is rewriting the history books in all the wrong ways,” Eric Blake, senior hurricane specialist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), said.

While natural weather patterns like La Nina can help drive catastrophic storms like Hurricane Beryl, the human-driven climate crisis still plays a role, as oceans absorb more than 90 percent of excess heat produced by greenhouse gases.

High water temperatures can contribute to sea level rise and hurt marine life in addition to fueling strong storms like Hurricane Beryl. Ocean temperatures will likely continue to rise even if we curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to NOAA.

Hurricane Beryl will travel through the Caribbean Sea towards the Yucatan Peninsula this week.

Officials received “widespread reports of destruction and devastation in Carriacou and Petite Martinique,” after the hurricane made landfall on Monday, Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said.

“In half an hour, Carriacou was flattened,” Mitchell continued.

Hurricane Beryl is expected to bring extreme weather conditions to Jamaica on Wednesday, which has a Hurricane Warning in effect, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC) as of Tuesday morning AST.

A ‘Hurricane Warning’ means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area, with “preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion,” the NHC defines.

A Hurricane Watch is in effect for Grand Cayman, Little Cayman and Cayman Brac, as Beryl is forecast to pass near the Cayman Islands on Thursday.

A ‘Hurricane Watch’ is typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds, meaning that hurricane conditions are possible within that area.

A Tropical Storm Warning is also in effect for the south coast of the Dominican Republic from Punta Palenque westward to the border with Haiti, the south coast of Haiti from the border with the Dominican Republic to Anse d’Hainault .

A ‘Tropical Storm Warning’ means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area within 36 hours, the NHC states.

Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said on Monday night that authorities are working to restore water and electricity resources in St Vincent and the Grenadines after Hurricane Beryl caused destruction as it barreled through the Caribbean.

Speaking in an address to the nation on Monday, Gonsalves said that VINLEC, the state’s energy utility, was working to bring back power to areas affected.

“VINLEC has a good crew, they have good leadership, they have resources at hand and I have all confidence that they will get back to normalcy as quickly as possible,” he said.

They are “working feverishly, urgently and with great focus to get electricity back in certain places tonight,” he added, especially in important institutions like the hospital.

The Prime Minister also said that personnel from the Water Authority told him that they would work to restore water supplies by Tuesday in the communities that have been cut off or are experiencing problems.

Local reports also state that phone service has been at a minimum, and internet access has been inconsistent since Monday, as well as most private radio stations also going off air.

The government-owned radio station, NBC Radio, is still on air, the St Vincent Times reports.

Power outages caused by the catastrophic Category 5 Hurricane Beryl have left many buildings, including hopsitals, without electricity and producing difficulty with communication between different islands.

Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves of St Vincent and the Grenadines, described the wake of Beryl as “immense destruction, pain, suffering” after parts of the islands, including hospitals, have no electricity.

This is due in part to many trees collapsing onto powerlines, but despite the lack of electricity in some areas, Gonsalves urged business owners and government buildings to reopen on Tuesday if possible.

Local authorities are “working feverishly, urgently and with great focus to get electricity in certain places tonight,” the Prime Minister said Monday in his address to the nation.

In Grenada, about 95% of the island has lost power due to Hurricane Beryl, Neila K. Ettienne, press secretary for the office of the prime minister, told CNN on Monday.

Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said on Monday that they were having difficulty assessing the situation on the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, where communications were largely down, however, reports did come in of “devastation” on Carriacou Monday afternoon.

Mitchell wrote on social media Tuesday morning asking for essential relief items to be brought to the Grenada Yacht Club for those affected in Carriacou and Petite Martinique, and will depart at 10am after loading contributions.

On Monday, Mitchell said that after a spout of cuts, electricity had been restored in Grenada in areas such as Maurice Bishop International Airport, the General Hospital and St. George’s University, with restoration efforts continuing in all affected areas.

Grenada officials also had to evacuate patients to a lower floor after a hospital roof was damaged in the storm.

Other areas of the Caribbean, such as Barbados, had also reported power outages and flooding in some areas on the island, their US Embassy reported.

Hurricane Beryl has set its sights on Jamaica as it continues to move towards the country after ripping through the Caribbean while intensifying its strength, bringing with it “life-threatening” winds and storm surges.

Hurricane conditions are expected for Jamaica as the hurricane passes near the country on Wednesday, which is currently under a Hurricane Warning, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The weather experts are warning that heavy rainfall and flash flooding will be likely once Hurricane Beryl, the record-breaking storm that has already devastated areas such as Grenada and St Vincent and the Grenadines, reaches the nation.

“Weakening should begin later today, but Beryl is still expected to be near major hurricane intensity as its moves into the central Caribbean and passes near Jamaica on Wednesday and the Cayman Islands on Thursday,” the NHC said in an update on Tuesday.

“Additional weakening is expected thereafter, though Beryl is forecast to remain a hurricane in the northwestern Caribbean.”

The NHC says that winds are expected to first reach tropical storm strength early on Wednesday, making outside preparations difficult or dangerous.

Along the immediate coast of Jamaica, storm surges could also raise water levels as much as three to five feet above normal tide levels.

As for rainfall, Beryl is expected to produce a total of four to eight inches of rain, with localized maxima of 12 inches, across Jamaica on Wednesday, which is likely to cause flash flooding.

Hurricane Beryl devastated Grenada after Carriacou was described by Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell as having been “flattened” within half an hour after announcing that one person had died.

“We do hope there aren’t any other fatalities or any injuries,” he said. “But bear in mind the challenge we have in Carriacou and Petite Martinique.”

The last strong hurricane to hit the southeast Caribbean was a storm named Hurricane Ivan that swept across Grenada in 2004, leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake.

Dozens of people were killed in Ivan’s devastation in Grenada after it reached a Category 3 status and sustained maximum winds of around 135 mph as it moved through the region that September.

Twenty years on, Grenada is now facing similar damage and destruction as the nation works to assess damages and provide relief to Carriacou and Petite Martinique, who were left with limited communication after Beryl.

“It was really frightening. It evoked memories of Hurricane Ivan, when you saw the trees swaying and you saw the branches starting to break off,” Terence Marryshow, 71, a doctor in southeastern Grenada told The Washington Post.

“But it didn’t last as long as Hurricane Ivan, and I don’t think it was as devastating as Hurricane Ivan … from what we’ve been able to gather for now.”

90 per cent of houses across Union Island in St Vincent and the Grenadines have been severely damaged or destroyed, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said in an address to the nation.

Union Island’s airport was also reported to have lost its roof after being blown away in the intense winds.

Elsewhere in the nation, hundreds of other buildings have been severely devastated after Beryl passed through, with Gonsalves saying in the community of Glen on the border between East and West St George, there had been 28 families made homeless as a result, local reports say.

Numerous homes, churches and schools have also suffered roof and other damage in the significant rainfall and heavy winds, which also tore apart trees, the nation’s agency for public information said.

Here is damage seen in Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines:

At least one death has been reported in St Vincent and the Grenadines after the dangerously strong Hurricane Beryl passed over the region.

Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves announced the death on Monday evening, saying that the hurricane had “left in its wake immense destruction, pain, suffering, across our nation at this hour.”

Around 90 per cent of the homes on the nation’s Union Island have been left damaged or destroyed, Gonsalves said.

Hundreds of other homes and buildings, including churches, schools, and government buildings across St. Vincent, have also been left with substantial damage as the hurricane churned over the region.

“Tomorrow, we get up with our commitment and conviction to rebuild our lives and our families’ lives,” Gonsalves said Monday night.

He added that there could be more fatalities, but the government was unsure at that time.

Many communities have been cut-off by their power as a result of the storm, which first responders will be trying to restore along with clearing debris from the roadways once conditions are safe, the Prime Minister said.

President Joe Biden and his team say they are closely monitoring the intensified Hurricane Beryl, and are in contact with territory and local officials.

The White House says that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have resources and supplies that are ‘pre-staged’ in the region, with staff and partners ready to assist.

They added that the President stands ready to support the people of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the region as needed, and will work to ensure the safety of all US citizens in the region.

The President is also urging residents to pay attention to the warnings of local officials.

Beryl has sustained winds of 165mph as it strengthened into a Category 5 storm on Monday.