Hurricane Beryl, the first hurricane of the season in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, is gaining strength as it heads toward the Caribbean. The storm is expected to lash the Caribbean with sustained winds of 179 to 209 kilometers per hour.
Al Jazeera, a Qatar-based media outlet, reported this information citing the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).
According to the report, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned that the hurricane could make a devastating impact on the island tomorrow, Monday (July 1).
Beryl is located in the Atlantic Ocean about 675 kilometers (420 miles) east of Barbados, the NHC said. It could hit the Windward Islands on Monday morning. At that time Beryl can turn into a very dangerous storm.
The storm is expected to become a Category 3 hurricane or greater. It will have sustained winds of 111 mph (179 km/h).
Hurricane warnings have also been issued for Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada, Martinique, Tobago and Dominica, the NHC said.
According to hurricane expert Michael Lowry, Beryl is the third category hurricane on record in the Atlantic this June, after Audrey in 1957 and Alma in 1966.
Meanwhile, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Grenadine Islands, Grenada and Tobago are under a maximum alert for Hurricane Beryl. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said residents were warned that up to 15 centimeters of rain could fall on the islands. In addition, tide levels in the Caribbean islands may rise 9 feet above normal during Beryl's impact.