Hurricane Beryl set to make landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula in the next day: Live updates

Hurricane Beryl weakened to a Category 2 storm this afternoon, with maximum sustained winds of 110mph.

This means the storm is no longer a “major hurricane,” which is defined as Category 3 and above.

However, it will still bring life-threatening storm conditions to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula — including several popular tourist destinations along the coast — within the next day.

Hurricane Beryl destroyed several buildings and left 400,000 customers without power in Jamaica on Wednesday.

Several roadways in the country’s interior settlements were impacted by fallen trees and utility poles, Jamaican officials said, while some communities in the northern section and the capital were without electricity.

“It’s terrible. Everything’s gone. I’m in my house and scared,” resident Amoy Wellington told Reuters. “It’s a disaster.”

While storm surge will gradually dwindle in the coming hours, Jamaica will still see heavy rain and potential flooding throughout the day.

Some 1,000 people were in hurricane shelters on Wednesday as the storm, now a Category 3, battered the nation.

Hurricane Beryl is now expected to make landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula within the next day.

Hurricane Beryl has killed at least ten people after devastating Jamaica, Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines this week.

At least two of those killed — the first in St George’s, Grenada and the second in Hanover, Jamaica — died after hurricane-force winds knocked trees onto their homes.

“It’s terrible. Everything’s gone. I’m in my house and scared,” Amoy Wellington of St. Elizabeth, Jamaica told Reuters. “It’s a disaster.”

Hurricane Beryl caused widespread destruction in Jamaica, Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines this week.

The storm left 400,000 customers in Jamaica without power on Wednesday after flattening Grenada’s Carriacou Island in half an hour on Monday.

Hurricane Beryl, now a Category 2 storm, will bring “life-threatening” storm conditions to the Yucatan Peninsula overnight, National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said minutes ago.

The storm is set to hit Texas by early Monday morning.

“We are forecasting some re-strengthening over the Gulf of Mexico as Beryl turns more northwestward and approaches the coast of northeastern Mexico and South Texas,” Brennan said. “We are forecasting it to be at or near hurricane strength by Monday morning, and expecting it to make landfall somewhere in that vicinity.”

Nearby residents should closely monitor the weather forecast and be on high alert for dangerous water conditions in the Gulf Coast over the weekend.

The National Weather Service has ended Hurricane Warnings for the Cayman Islands as Beryl passes through the region.

Hurricane Beryl is now on its way to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.

Led by Indian skipper Rohit Sharma, the men’s team on Sunday won the T20 World Cup against South Africa in a nail-biter that broke a 12-year unsuccessful streak.

The Independent’s Arpan Rai has the story:

Record-breaking hurricanes like Beryl — the earliest recorded Category 5 storm — are being driven in part by the climate crisis.

“It’s really scary stuff,” Steve Maximay, a climate and agriculture expert in Grenada, previously told The Independent.

”When you talk about Category 4 and 5, there are very few systems or protocols that can prepare you for that,” Maximay continued. “You can have resilient buildings but category five winds can move concrete structures.”

Hurricane Beryl’s growth into a Category 5 storm can be attributed to record-warm ocean temperatures. High water temperatures can contribute to sea level rise and hurt marine life in addition to fueling strong storms like Hurricane Beryl. Ocean temperatures will likely continue to rise even if we curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to NOAA.

Island nations are at the front lines of the climate crisis, given their vulnerability to violent storms and sea-level rise.

The Alliance of Small Island States, an organization designed to create a unified voice for small island nations to address the ongoing climate crisis, denounced the climate crisis and its impact on island nations.

“We continue to be sacrificed on the frontlines of a climate crisis we did not cause,” the statement said. “Our sea temperatures grow warmer, encouraging storms to strengthen at alarming speed and increasing the dire threat to our developing countries. The increased danger is evident for the world to see.”

“If the world does not stand with [Small Island Developing States] now, it is only a matter of time before we are all lost,” the alliance continued.

Sophie Powell, chief of advocacy for the United Kingdom-based non-profit Christian Aid, highlighted the role the climate crisis has played in Hurricane Beryl’s devastation.

“The people picking through the wreckage of such a devastating storm have done nothing to cause the climate crisis,” Powell said in a statement. “The carbon emissions of these small, low-lying islands are miniscule yet the consequences to their lives of climate breakdown are vast.”

AccuWeather Meteorologist Geoff Cornish says Hurricane Beryl could bring four to eight inches of rain to Brownsville, Texas if it hits the region early next week.

“San Antonio and Austin will likely see several inches of rain from Beryl as well,” Cornish said.

AccuWeather’s Paul Pastelok warns the storm could stall in the Gulf Coast, driving longer storm conditions.

“There is a chance that this storm may stall once it gets onshore in northern Mexico and southern Texas, which could lead to more rainfall and flooding concerns,” Pastelok said. The National Weather Service said Beryl has the potential to hit Texas on Monday into Tuesday.

For now, the Category 3 storm is blowing through the Cayman Islands on its way to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.