Hurricane Beryl has intensified into the first major hurricane of the Atlantic season as it approaches the southeastern Caribbean. Forecasters warn that Beryl is expected to strengthen into a dangerous Category 3 storm with winds of at least 178 kilometers per hour before reaching Barbados late Sunday or early Monday.
On Saturday night, Beryl was classified as a Category 1 hurricane, marking the farthest east a hurricane has formed in the tropical Atlantic in June since 1933, according to Philip Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University.
Hurricane warnings have been issued for Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Tropical storm warnings are in place for Martinique and Tobago, with a tropical storm watch for Dominica.
As of late Saturday, Beryl was located approximately 955 kilometers east-southeast of Barbados, with maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers per hour. The hurricane is moving west at a speed of 31 kilometers per hour. Sabu Best, director of Barbados' meteorological service, forecasted that Beryl's center would pass about 45 kilometers south of Barbados before crossing the Caribbean towards Jamaica and eventually Mexico.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
