Hurricane Beryl is ‘extremely dangerous’ as it brings 130 mph winds to the Caribbean

Hurricane Beryl loomed toward St. Vincent — and grew in power — as it brought threats of catastrophic winds and dangerous storm surges to the Windward Islands. The storm is seen here in a satellite image just after sunrise on Monday. NOAA/NESDIS/STAR GOES-East hide caption

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Hurricane Beryl is menacing islands on the eastern edge of the Caribbean with 130 mph winds and a dangerous storm surge after strengthening Monday morning, the National Hurricane Center said.

"This is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation. Take action now to protect your life!" the center said as landfall was imminent early Monday. "Residents in the Grenadine Islands and Carriacou Island should not leave their shelter as winds will rapidly increase within the eyewall of Beryl."

The Category 4 storm was about 50 miles east of Grenada, moving at 20 mph as of 10 a.m. ET. Its center was passing south of Barbados, but Beryl still hammered the island with winds that gusted up to 70 mph. Islands in its direct path face far greater impacts from floods and wind.

“Potentially catastrophic wind damage is expected where the core of Beryl moves through portions of the Windward Islands, with the highest risk of the core in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada,” the hurricane center said.

Beryl has put up some eyepopping numbers in recent days, with warm ocean water allowing it to quickly gain strength after becoming a tropical depression on Friday. When it blossomed into a Category 4 storm on Sunday, it became the first Atlantic hurricane ever to attain that status in June.

A five-day forecast cone shows the likely path of Hurricane Beryl as it moves across the Caribbean Sea and an eventual landfall — likely near Mexico's Yucatan. National Hurricane Center hide caption

toggle caption National Hurricane Center

How dangerous is the storm?

Beryl weakened slightly to a Category 3 storm early Monday, but meteorologists predicted it would likely gain power again after an eyewall replacement took place in that same timeframe.

Its sustained winds of 130 mph edge Beryl’s into Category 4 on the Saffir-Sampson wind scale. The power of storms in that class is fierce.

“There is a very high risk of injury or death to people, livestock, and pets due to flying and falling debris,” according to the NHC. “Nearly all older (pre-1994) manufactured homes will be destroyed. A high percentage of newer manufactured homes also will be destroyed,” and poorly built homes could see all of their walls collapse.

While hurricane winds draw much attention, the cyclones pose the greatest threat to life with floodwater, from rain and storm surge. 

  “A life-threatening storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 6 to 9 feet above normal tide levels” close to its landfall, the NHC said.   

Beryl is forecast to drop 3 to 6 inches of rain across the Windward Islands through Monday afternoon.  

Despite passing south of Barbados, Barbados Meteorological Services Director Sabu Best said in an update early Monday that wind gusts were dangerously strong, from 50 up to 70 mph, urging residents to say inside until an “all clear” has been announced. Rainfall, he added, had not been as bad as expected.

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What is Beryl’s expected path?

The hurricane is currently heading west-northwest, moving through the Windward Islands Monday morning before heading across the southeastern and central Caribbean Sea, the NHC said on Monday.

A west-northwest track is a very common heading for an Atlantic hurricane. And while many storms that have hit the U.S. have eventually curved distinctly toward the north, Beryl is currently forecast to maintain a predominantly westward motion until it hits Mexico. Its current forecast track is further south than earlier predictions.

On its current forecast path, the earliest tropical storm-force winds are expected to hit Central America Wednesday night. Mexico’s coastal states of Quintana Roos and Yucatan will likely feel those winds on Thursday.