Hurricane Beryl: Caribbean residents are advised to seek refuge as airports close

 As a potentially catastrophic storm makes landfall in the Caribbean, businesses and airports have closed and people are being advised to seek shelter.

With its renewed intensity in the last few hours, Hurricane Beryl has prompted alerts on potentially fatal winds and hazardous storm surges.
Barbados, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Tobago are under a hurricane warning.

As Beryl approached on Sunday night, dozens of flights were canceled throughout the area, and authorities urged people to heed warnings.  The prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves, told the public, "It is not a joke," bringing up the destruction inflicted by earlier hurricanes in the Caribbean.
Speaking to the nation from his official home, Mr. Gonsalves announced that he was taking refuge in his basement.
"The roof—certainly the older portion of it—might not be able to withstand winds of 150 mph (241 km/h). I'm getting ready to head downstairs," he uttered.

Beryl has been erratic in her strength.
After previously weakening significantly, the hurricane was upgraded to a category four on Monday.
The NHC issued a warning that some areas of the Windward islands should brace for "potentially catastrophic wind damage" but acknowledging that strength variations were expected to persist.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines were mentioned as well as Grenada were at the highest risk of damage.

Additionally, Barbados' prime minister, Mia Mottley, asked people to exercise caution.
"We must be prepared. As you and I both know, it's important to prepare for the worse and hope for the best when these things occur," she remarked.
She continued, "Do not let your guard down."

It is unusual for a hurricane of this power to form this early in the year, according to meteorologists.
Hurricane specialist Michael Lowry wrote on X, then known as twitter, "Only five major (Category 3+) hurricanes have been recorded in the Atlantic before the first week of July."
"Beryl would be the sixth and earliest this far east in the tropical Atlantic," noted Mr. Lowry this year, the North Atlantic may see up to seven significant hurricanes, an increase from the season's typical three.

It stated that part of the problem was the record high sea surface temperatures.  Meteorologists have also noted Beryl's rapid development.
Within forty-two hours, the storm intensified from a tropical depression to a major hurricane (category three or higher), according to hurricane expert Sam Lillo, who spoke with the Associated Press news agency.
The majority of the area has heeded the alerts.

Stores are closed, and customers have piled high with goods and fuel.
A state of emergency was declared in Grenada, and St. Lucia implemented a "national shutdown" that required businesses and educational institutions to close.