Why Hurricane Beryl’s Early Arrival is Breaking Records and Raising Concerns

Image Credit: Al Jazeera

Hurricane Beryl, the first hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic season, has intensified into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph. This development occurred on Sunday as the hurricane made its way towards the Windward Islands, marking Beryl as the earliest Category 4 hurricane on record in the Atlantic Ocean and the only Category 4 storm ever recorded in June.

Beryl’s tropical storm-force winds are anticipated to reach the Windward Islands late Sunday or early Monday. The early occurrence of this season’s first hurricane is unusual, given that the average date for the first hurricane is August 11.

As of 8 p.m. ET, Beryl was located about 200 miles southeast of Barbados and heading west. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned that a life-threatening storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 6 to 9 feet above normal tide levels in areas of onshore flow near where the eye makes landfall in the hurricane warning area. This surge could bring large and destructive waves near the coast.

The hurricane is strengthening rapidly, with an increase of 55 mph in the 24 hours before Sunday morning. “We’re forecasting rapid intensification and expecting Beryl to become a major hurricane before it reaches places like Barbados and the Windward Islands and continue to be a powerful hurricane as it moves into the eastern and central Caribbean as we go into the early portions of next week,” said Mike Brennan, the hurricane center’s director.

Rapid intensification is defined by the NHC as an increase in maximum sustained wind speed of 35 mph or more in a 24-hour period. Residents in places with hurricane warnings should be prepared for significant impacts, including heavy rainfall, destructive hurricane-force winds, dangerous storm surge, and waves. Rainfall totals of 3 to 6 inches could cause localized flooding across the Windward Islands Sunday night and Monday.

Hurricane warnings are in effect for Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, and Tobago. The hurricane is expected to produce 3 to 6 inches of rain across Barbados and the Windward Islands through Monday. Beryl’s passage near the Windward Islands of Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as a powerful Category 4 hurricane would make it the strongest storm there since Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

Tobago has been placed under a red-level warning – the highest public alert issued by the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Service – early Sunday evening. The warning instructs residents to take immediate action to protect their lives, livelihoods, and property. “Shelter in place or evacuate to a safe location if your home is unsafe or vulnerable to flooding or wind damage,” the agency advised.

The Dominican Republic’s government has issued a tropical storm watch from Punta Palenque westward to the border with Haiti ahead of Beryl. A tropical storm watch has also been issued for Haiti’s entire south coast, from the border of the Dominican Republic to Anse-d’Hainault. A tropical storm warning remains in effect for Martinique and a tropical storm watch for Dominica and Trinidad.

In Barbados, where the effects of Beryl are expected to be felt late Sunday, residents are making extensive preparations. Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley urged all non-essential businesses on the island to close by 8:30 p.m. Sunday. The center of Beryl is expected to pass about 75 miles south of the island early Monday morning, bringing hurricane-force winds, heavy rainfall, flash flooding, and severe thunderstorms.

“The reality is that we do not want to put anybody’s life at risk in this country,” Mottley emphasized in a video message. Airports in Barbados, Grenada, and Saint Lucia will close Sunday night as Beryl approaches. Grenada’s Maurice Bishop International Airport will close at 6 p.m. and is tentatively set to reopen on Tuesday at 10 a.m., depending on the situation. Barbados’ Grantley Adams International Airport will close from 7 p.m. until further notice, while Saint Lucia’s Hewanorra International Airport and George F. L. Charles Airport will also suspend operations.

Barbados is still hosting cricket fans from around the globe for the T20 World Cup, with some visitors unable to leave until Monday or Tuesday. Mottley urged residents to support those unfamiliar with hurricane procedures and continue making hurricane preparations.

In Saint Lucia, a national shutdown will commence at 8:30 p.m. Sunday, with businesses and schools remaining closed on Monday. Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre encouraged residents to secure their property, check on the vulnerable in their communities, and ensure they have essential supplies.

Beryl is the earliest major hurricane in the Atlantic in 58 years. Its rapid intensification this early in the hurricane season is highly unusual, according to Brennan. Tropical systems typically do not form in the central Atlantic east of the Lesser Antilles in June, making Beryl’s formation particularly rare.

Beryl is the Atlantic Ocean’s third-earliest major hurricane, following Hurricane Alma on June 8, 1996, and Hurricane Audrey on June 27, 1957. The storm has set the record for the easternmost hurricane to form in the Tropical Atlantic in June.

The central and eastern Atlantic usually become more active in August due to warmer ocean temperatures and reduced wind shear. This year, however, the Atlantic basin has seen above-normal water temperatures and a transition from El Niño to La Niña, both conducive to tropical development.

“Beryl has found an environment with very warm ocean waters for this time of year,” Brennan noted. Warmer waters have allowed tropical storms and hurricanes to develop more rapidly and powerfully earlier in the season, raising concerns about increased destructive potential.

This story was originally featured on CNN