Earliest Atlantic storm to develop into a Category 5 hurricanepublished at 09:59
09:59
Will Grant
BBC Mexico, Central America and Cuba Correspondent
Hurricane Beryl continues to break records with frightening speed.
It’s now the earliest in Atlantic hurricane history to reach the maximum level, Category 5 – before weakening to a still-destructive Category 4.
Its devastating power was felt with full force in several Caribbean nations.
The storm strengthened from a tropical depression into a major hurricane – category three or above – in only 42 hours, hurricane expert Sam Lillo told Associated Press news agency.
Carriacou Island, off Grenada’s coast, was “flattened in half-an-hour”, the country’s Prime Minister said.
Roofs were ripped off, power lines brought down and the island’s community remains almost entirely cut off.
It was a similar story on Union Island, which is part of St Vincent and the Grenadines. Mobile phone footage shows residents sifting through the rubble of their homes, trying to salvage their possessions.
Thousands remain in temporary shelters and power is expected to be out in much of St Vincent for several more days.
Source link : https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cyx53q05lrpt
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Publish date : 2024-07-03 05:03:57
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