June 30 (Reuters) – The “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm Hurricane Beryl barrelled across the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday afternoon toward the Caribbean’s Windward Islands, where it is expected to bring life-threatening winds and flash flooding on Monday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
The first hurricane of the 2024 season was located about 250 miles (400 km) southeast of Barbados on Sunday afternoon, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 kph), the NHC said in an advisory.
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CARICOM states are declaring emergencies and trying to ensure preparations are in place in the event of a hard hit.
IMF, UN and other studies have tried to quantify the impact that natural disasters such as hurricanes have on the Caribbean…lives lost, infrastructure destroyed, huge damage and rebuilding costs, lower growth etc. The numbers are staggering and serve to underscore the Caribbean agenda to address climate change and disaster resilience. So often, just as economies are starting to get on track, something like Beryl comes along to set it all back again.
The Canada-Caribbean Institute urges all in the path of Hurricane Beryl to stay safe. Following the storm, we will continue to do what we can to highlight and promote the Caribbean agenda to see governments and stakeholders take the actions that can help mitigate the human and economic impacts of this kind of event.