Hurricane Beryl is breaking records as it wreaks havoc in the southeastern Caribbean.
On Sunday, Beryl became the first Category 4 storm ever to form in the Atlantic Ocean in the month of June. No storm has reached Category 4 intensity so early in the hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. The previous record was held by Hurricane Dennis, which slammed into Cuba as a Category 4 storm on July 8, 2005.
The storm then intensified on Monday, making history again as the earliest Category 5 storm on record in the Atlantic.
Hurricane Beryl made landfall Monday on Carriacou Island, and it is expected to bring heavy rain and life-threatening winds and flooding as it moves west across the Caribbean. The storm is expected to pass near Jamaica on Wednesday.
The storm has killed at least four people so far, and officials said the number of fatalities could increase in the coming days.
In a news briefing Monday, Prime Minister of Grenada Dickon Mitchell said Hurricane Beryl flattened Carriacou in half an hour.
This year’s hurricane season is expected to be exceptionally busy, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The agency’s May outlook predicted eight to 13 hurricanes in what forecasters said would likely be an “extraordinary” season.
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