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Hurricane Beryl has strengthened to category 4 as it heads for several islands in the eastern Caribbean.
The hurricane will bring “potentially catastrophic hurricane-force winds, a life-threatening storm surge, and damaging waves” as it passes through the Windward Islands on Monday morning, the National Weather Service (NWS) said. This will be the strongest storm to hit the islands since 2004.
While the storm may not make true landfall, it is still expected to devastate island communities in the eastern Caribbean. Some 400 people were evacuated to hurricane shelters in Barbados on Sunday night, CNN reports. Airports in Barbados, Grenada, and Saint Lucia closed on Sunday night.
Hurricane Beryl marks the start of a notably early hurricane season, experts say. Record-warm ocean temperatures made the storm grow from a tropical depression to a hurricane in just two days.
The hurricane “is rewriting the history books in all the wrong ways,” according to Eric Blake, senior hurricane specialist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves called on residents “to take this matter very seriously.”
“We all have to prepare for the worst,” he said.
Ocean waters heated by climate crisis fueled Hurricane Beryl
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.
The human-driven climate crisis plays a role in these rising temperatures. Oceans absorb more than 90 percent of excess heat produced by greenhouse gases, according to NOAA.
High ocean temperatures, in addition to fueling storms like Hurricane Beryl, can contribute to sea level rise and hurt marine life.
Ocean temperatures will likely continue to rise even if we curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to NOAA.
In pictures: Communities brace for Hurricane Beryl
Communities in the eastern Caribbean rushed to complete preparations this weekend as Hurricane Beryl grew from a tropical depression to a category 4 in a few days.
Mapped: Hurricane Beryl’s path
Hurricane Beryl, now strengthened to category 4, is set to bring “potentially catastrophic hurricane-force winds, a life-threatening storm surge, and damaging waves” to the Windward Islands this morning.
The hurricane is set to move west throughout the week.
Source: independent.co.uk
