Beryl became Originally named Hurricane of 2024 Atlantic hurricane season It will inch toward the southeastern Caribbean on Saturday, where high winds and heavy rain are forecast.
Beryl strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane Sunday morning, becoming the first major hurricane east of the Lesser Antilles in June, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Philip Klotzbach.
Forecasters warned that Beryl could strengthen into a dangerous major hurricane before reaching Barbados and the Windward Islands late Sunday or early Monday. Brian McNoldy, a tropical meteorologist at the University of Miami, told The Associated Press that warm water is fueling the beryl, and ocean temperatures in the deep Atlantic are the hottest on record this year.
Beryl was the first hurricane to form in the Atlantic basin before the 4th of July in more than fifty years. Alma Hit the Florida Keys According to Weather Underground on June 8, 1966.
NOAA
Where is Hurricane Beryl headed?
As of Sunday morning, Beryl was located 420 miles east-southeast of Barbados, moving west at 21 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. Wind gusts reached 115 mph.
Beryl’s center is forecast to pass about 26 miles south of Barbados, Sabu Best, director of the island’s weather service, told the AP.
CBS News weather producer David Parkinson said Hurricane Beryl was the furthest east that formed in June. Another hurricane formed in the east in June – that was in 1933.
NOAA
By Sunday night or early Monday, Beryl’s center is expected to move across the Windward Islands — which include Grenada, Martinique, St. Lucia, Dominica and St. Vincent — bringing “life-threatening winds and storm surge,” according to the hurricane center.
Beryl is expected to become a major hurricane by the time it reaches the Windward Islands, the hurricane center said. As of Saturday evening, Beryl remained A category 3, is a hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 111 mph or greater. It turns into a huge hurricane.
NOAA
Where will Hurricane Beryl bring rain and flooding?
Beryl is forecast to drop 3 to 6 inches of rain on Barbados and the Windward Islands, and storm surges of up to seven feet.
Up to 6 inches of rain is expected in St. Vincent. Between 2 and 4 inches of rain is expected in Martinique, Grenada and Dominica. Beryl expected to bring life-threatening winds and storm surge to the Windward Islands beginning Sunday night.
NOAA
Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Grenada and the Grenadine Islands are all under hurricane warning. Martinique and Tobago are under a tropical storm warning, while Dominica is under a tropical storm watch.
Any U.S. impact is still at least eight days away, Parkinson said, and Beryl is expected to be south of Jamaica.
— David Parkinson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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