Beryl makes landfall as Category 4 hurricane on island near Grenada

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A dangerous and extremely powerful Hurricane Beryl made landfall Monday on the Caribbean island of Carriacou after becoming the earliest storm of Category 4 strength to form in the Atlantic, fuelled by record warm waters.

The hurricane had winds up to 150 mph (240 kph), just shy of a Category 5 storm, as it blew off roofs, uprooted trees and caused other damage on Carriacou, one of the islands of Grenada, and elsewhere in the southeast Caribbean.

"This is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation," the National Hurricane Center said.

Hurricane warnings were in effect for Barbados, Grenada, Tobago and St Vincent and the Grenadines as thousands of people hunkered down in homes and shelters. The last strong hurricane to hit the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan 20 years ago, which killed dozens of people in Grenada.

NBC Radio in St Vincent and the Grenadines said it received reports of roofs being torn off churches and schools as communications began collapsing across the southeast Caribbean.

"Jesus Christ!" one woman could be heard yelling in a video that shows tin roofs flying through the air.

Late Monday morning, Beryl was located about 30 miles (50 kilometres) northeast of the island of Grenada, with maximum sustained winds of 150 miles (240 kilometres) per hour, and was moving west-northwest at 20 mph (31 kph).

Officials in Barbados received more than a dozen reports of roof damage, fallen trees and downed electric posts across the island, said Kerry Hinds, emergency management director.

Once Beryl passes, drones will assess damage and speed up response, said Wilfred Abrahams, minister of home affairs and information. Before, it used to take two hours to receive information as crews fanned out across the island, versus seven minutes with drones, he noted.

A tropical storm warning was in effect for St Lucia, Martinique and Trinidad. A tropical storm watch was issued for Haiti's entire southern coast, and from Punta Palenque in the Dominican Republic west to the border with Haiti. A hurricane watch was issued for Jamaica.

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