The strengthening storm Beryl is approaching the Antilles.
It could reach hurricane strength in the coming hours.
Measures are expected to be announced by the authorities.
It was located some 1,400 km southeast of the Antilles on Saturday and is expected to strengthen to hurricane strength before passing over the islands. Tropical storm Beryl is threatening the vast archipelago by the hour.
As of Friday, the prefect of Martinique had put the island’s departmental operational center on standby, the French territory most threatened by the probable trajectory of the storm, his office announced.
“Beryl was expected to become a hurricane tonight or Sunday”
Météo France predicts the phenomenon will pass “on the Lesser Antilles, between Tobago for the southernmost island and the south of Martinique for the northernmost island” between next Monday and Tuesday. Situation reports should be made on Saturday and then Sunday, the prefecture indicated in a press release, adding that “measures could then be taken, depending on updated weather forecasts.”
Average winds around the center of Beryl reached 85 km/h, with gusts higher, indicated the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami (United States), which is the reference in the Atlantic basin. “Beryl was expected to become a hurricane tonight (Saturday) or Sunday,” he anticipated in his bulletin published Saturday at 9:00 a.m. GMT (11:00 a.m. in Paris).
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Waves of 5 meters are expected
“It is already very likely that the sea state will be very rough from Sunday evening, and particularly during the day on Monday”have for their part anticipated the State services in Martinique. Waves of 5 meters are thus expected in the Sainte-Lucie channel, south of the French island.
Béryl is the second tropical phenomenon named since the beginning of June in the Atlantic basin. The 2024 hurricane season is announced by Météo France as “one of the most intense years” in this matter. In October 2023, the passage of Hurricane Tammy caused material damage in Guadeloupe, without causing any casualties.
