Hurricane "Beryl" in the Caribbean causes severe devastation
As Hurricane "Beryl" reached the highest category in the Caribbean, it caused severe damage. At least one person died according to government reports on Tuesday in the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines island group. The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) upgraded "Beryl" to a Category 5 hurricane - the earliest in the year that such a hurricane has been recorded.
"Beryl", the first storm of the hurricane season, developed into a "potentially catastrophic" hurricane with wind speeds of up to 260 kilometers per hour, the NHC reported. No storm of Category 5 had been recorded so early in the year in the Atlantic as "Beryl".
In its first bulletin on Tuesday, the NHC stated that the wind could intensify to nearly 270 kilometers per hour. Three hours later, it was reported that "Beryl" could weaken during the day but the danger would not decrease. The eye of the storm was moving quickly towards the southeastern Caribbean. On Wednesday, the hurricane was expected to pass near Jamaica and on Thursday near the Caiman Islands.
Before being upgraded to Category 5, the storm had hit the Grenada-belonging island of Carriacou. "Carriacou was flattened within half an hour," said Grenada's Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell at a press conference. Initially, no fatalities were reported but this could change.
"We are not over the hill," emphasized the Prime Minister. Later, he posted on online networks that his government was making efforts to bring relief supplies to Carriacou and the island of Petite Martinique. "The state of emergency continues. Stay indoors," warned Mitchell on Facebook.
The Category 5 hurricane, named "Beryl," was the earliest recorded in the Atlantic to reach such a intensity, affecting the Caribbean. The devastating effects of "Beryl" were evident on Carribbean islands, with Grenada's Carriacou being severely impacted, with Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell stating that the island was "flattened within half an hour." Despite weakening later, the hurricane continued to pose a danger, heading towards Jamaica on Wednesday and the Caiman Islands on Thursday.
