KINGSTON, Jamaica — Hurricane Beryl roared toward Jamaica on Wednesday, leaving islanders rushing to prepare after the devastating Category 4 storm killed at least six people and inflicted substantial damage in the southeast Caribbean.
People in Kingston boarded up their windows, fishermen withdrew their boats from the sea, and workers demolished roadside advertising boards to safeguard them from the fierce winds.
Pauline Lynch, a Kingston resident, said she had prepared for the storm by stockpiling food and water. With the wind already whipping up a light rain, Lynch stated, “I have no control over what is coming, so all I can do is pray that all Jamaicans are safe and that there are no deaths or losses.”
Hurricane Beryl Roars Toward Jamaica After Killing At Least 6 People In The Southeast Caribbean
A hurricane warning was issued for Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. Beryl was expected to decrease slightly over the next day or two but remain at or near major hurricane strength when it passes near or over Jamaica on Wednesday, near the Cayman Islands on Thursday, and into Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula on Friday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced that the disaster zone declaration will stay in effect for seven days. He also declared an island-wide curfew from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
Security personnel “will be fully mobilized to maintain public order and aid in disaster relief.” As soon as the cyclone passed, the security forces devised strategic preparations to prevent any potential threat of looting or other opportunistic crimes,” Holness stated.
An evacuation order was also issued for Jamaica villages vulnerable to flooding and landslides. Holness warned Jamaicans to avoid low-lying regions.
A hurricane watch was issued for Haiti’s southern and Yucatan east coast. Belize issued a tropical storm watch extending south from its Mexico border to Belize City.
Late Monday, Beryl became the Atlantic’s first Category 5 hurricane, reaching 165 mph (270 kph) on Tuesday before falling to a still-destructive Category 4. On Wednesday, the storm was approximately 75 miles (125 kilometers) southeast of Kingston. It had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 kph) and was traveling west-northwest at 18 mph (30 kph).
Michael Brennan, Director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, stated that Jamaica appears in Beryl’s direct path. He asked citizens to locate a secure shelter and stay there until Wednesday.
“We are most concerned about Jamaica, where we are expecting the core of a major hurricane to pass near or over the island,” according to a briefing he gave online.
Jamaica is expected to see a storm surge of 6-9 feet (1.8 to 2.7 meters) over normal tidal levels and severe rains.
On Wednesday, Mexico’s Caribbean coast prepared for Beryl. The government has issued a hurricane warning for the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, from Puerto Costa Maya to Cancun.
The head of Mexico’s civil defense agency stated that Beryl is expected to launch a rare twin blow on the country. According to Laura Velázquez, the hurricane is forecast to land between late Thursday and early Friday on a rather unpopulated stretch of the Caribbean coast between Tulum and the inland town of Felipe Carrillo Puerto. Because the coast is primarily made up of lagoons and mangroves, there are few resorts or hotels south of Tulum.
As it traverses the Yucatan peninsula, the hurricane is anticipated to diminish to a tropical storm before reemerging as a storm in the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend. According to Velázquez, Beryl is likely to impact Mexican territory again, this time on the Gulf Coast states of Veracruz or Tamaulipas, close to the Texas border.
As Beryl plowed into the Caribbean Sea, rescue personnel in the southeastern islands spread out to assess the extent of the hurricane’s destruction to Carriacou, Grenada.
Officials confirmed three deaths in Grenada and Carriacou, as well as one in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Two further deaths were confirmed in northern Venezuela, while five people are missing, officials said. Beryl’s torrential downpour also affected approximately 25,000 people in the area.
Hurricane Beryl Roars Toward Jamaica After Killing At Least 6 People In The Southeast Caribbean
The environment minister, Kerryne James, told The Associated Press that a tree fell on a house in Grenada, killing one. She claimed that Carriacou and Petit Martinique suffered the worst damage, with Carriacou losing hundreds of homes and businesses.
Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell stated on Tuesday that there is no power, roads are impassable, and the possibility of an increase in the death toll “remains a grim reality.”
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves has pledged to reconstruct the archipelago. He stated that 90% of homes on Union Island had been demolished and that “similar levels of devastation” were expected on the islands of Myreau and Canouan.
The most recent powerful hurricane to reach the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan, which killed scores of people in Grenada 20 years ago.
Grenada nicknamed the “spice isle,” is a major supplier of nutmeg. Mitchell stated that most of the spices are planted in the northern portion of the island, which Beryl most damaged.
SOURCE – (AP)