KINGSTON: Hurricane Beryl is bearing down on Mexico and the Cayman Islands early Thursday, intensifying fears of strong winds and a potentially devastating storm surge after battering Jamaica’s southern coast.
Beryl weakened to a Category 3 storm overnight, with sustained winds of 125 miles per hour (200 kilometers per hour), but it is projected to regain major hurricane intensity as it moves close to the Cayman Islands, according to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).
The NHC issued warnings of “strong winds, dangerous storm surge, and damaging winds” expected across the Cayman Islands overnight, heightening concerns for residents and authorities alike.
The storm has already left a trail of destruction across the Caribbean, killing at least seven people and triggering flash floods and mudslides as it advances towards Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
This storm marks a significant milestone as the first to reach Category 4 in June and the earliest to achieve Category 5 in July since NHC records began.
In anticipation of Beryl’s impact, Mexican officials have mobilized resources, with Civil Protection national coordinator Laura Velazquez announcing the deployment of hundreds of military personnel, marines, and electricity workers to mitigate potential damage.
“We are expecting intense rains and strong wind gusts starting Thursday,” Velazquez stated. School activities have been suspended in Quintana Roo state, expected to bear the brunt of Beryl’s landfall.
In Jamaica, Hurricane Beryl has left more than 400,000 people without power, according to the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper. Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared a curfew across the island, urging compliance with evacuation orders to safeguard the population of 2.8 million.
Desmon Brown, manager of Kingston’s National Stadium, described efforts to fortify against the storm: “We have secured our windows, protected equipment such as computers and printers. Given our structure, there is limited additional measures we can take,” Brown explained to the Jamaica Observer newspaper.
Hurricane Beryl’s impact has been severe across the region, claiming lives in Grenada, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Venezuela. The storm made landfall in Grenada on Monday, resulting in three fatalities, with additional casualties reported elsewhere due to the storm’s relentless force.
Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, underscored the monumental task of rebuilding in the storm’s wake, lamenting widespread damage to infrastructure and essential services.
The devastation is compounded by climate change, as warm ocean temperatures fuel hurricanes. The North Atlantic waters are notably warmer than average, enhancing storm intensity, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
UN climate chief Simon Stiell, reflecting on the unprecedented severity of recent disasters, emphasized the role of climate change in exacerbating weather-related catastrophes.
“Disasters of this magnitude were once the realm of science fiction but are now reality, driven primarily by the climate crisis,” Stiell asserted.
