HURRICANE BERYL HEADS FOR JAMAICA
Climate change likely contributed to rapid formation of ‘potentially catastrophic’ storm
People visiting a pier during a high tide after the passage of Hurricane Beryl in Oistins near Bridgetown, Barbados on Monday.
HURRICANE Beryl strengthened on Monday into a “potentially catastrophic” Category 5 storm as it moved across the eastern Caribbean, putting Jamaica near its path after downing power lines and flooding streets elsewhere.
Beryl brings an unusually fierce and early start to this year’s Atlantic hurricane season, with scientists saying climate change probably contributed to the rapid pace of its formation as global warming has boosted North Atlantic temperatures.
By 11am on Monday, Beryl, packing winds of up to 257kph, was about 1,352km east-southeast of Kingston, the Jamaican capital, the United States National Hurricane Center said.
The storm struck the Caribbean region earlier in the day as the earliest Category 4 storm on record, rated on the five-point Saffir-Simpson scale.
“Beryl is now a potentially catastrophic Category 5 hurricane,” the NHC said, adding that it was expected to bring life-threatening winds and a storm surge to Jamaica later this week.
The storm could dump 10cm to 20cm of rain today and up to 31cm in some areas, it said.
Beryl was expected to soak the island of Hispaniola yesterday in 5cm to 15cm of rain, as it moves west-northwest at nearly 35kph, the centre said.
Jamaica issued a hurricane warning on Monday, while tropical storm warnings were in effect for the southern coasts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
At the Chillin’ restaurant in Kingston, waiter Welton Anderson said he felt calm despite the hurricane’s approach.
“Jamaicans wait until the last minute. The night before or in the morning, the panic sets in. It’s because we’re used to this.”
Across other islands in the eastern Caribbean, residents had boarded up windows, stocked up on food and fuelled up cars as the storm approached.
Earlier on Monday, vehicles were seen driving through a flooded boardwalk in Bridgetown, Barbados. The St Vincent community of Prospect reported roofs ripped off buildings and power cuts in some areas.
Officials in Mexico began to prepare for Beryl’s arrival this week, with the federal government urging “extreme caution” on authorities and people.
“What worries us is that basins are already saturated,” said Cutberto Ruiz, chief of meteorology at Oaxaca’s civil protection agency. “Then, with minimal rain... rivers will rise.”
Global warming has helped push temperatures in the North Atlantic to all-time highs, causing more surface water to evaporate, which in turn provides additional fuel for more intense hurricanes with higher wind speeds.
Scientists surveyed by Reuters see the powerful hurricane Beryl as a harbinger of an unusually active hurricane season made possible by record high temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean.
“Climate change is loading the dice for more intense hurricanes to form,” said Christopher Rozoff, of the US National Center for Atmospheric Research.