Photos: Deadly Hurricane Beryl breaks records as it bears down on the Caribbean

Chanelle Chandler
A fisherman looks at fishing vessels damaged by Hurricane Beryl at the Bridgetown Fisheries in Barbados.
A fisherman looks at fishing vessels damaged by Hurricane Beryl at the Bridgetown Fisheries in Barbados. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Hurricane Beryl was heading toward Jamaica and the Cayman Islands as a Category 4 storm on Wednesday morning, with sustained winds of 145 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center. Beryl already made landfall on several Caribbean islands earlier this week, causing extensive damage and multiple deaths.

Residents in the Caribbean have been advised to shelter in place as the storm is expected to bring “life-threatening winds” and flooding.

Beryl first made landfall on the Windward Islands, which includes Grenada, the Grenadines and Carriacou Island, late Monday morning. The hurricane also wreaked havoc on the islands of Barbados, St. Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago, knocking out power and destroying homes and businesses. At its peak, Beryl was the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane on record and the second-strongest Atlantic storm ever recorded in July, with sustained winds that reached 165 mph at one point.

“The situation is grim,” Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said in a news conference Tuesday. “There is no power, and there is almost complete destruction of homes and buildings on the island. The roads are not passable, and in many instances they are cut off because of the large quantity of debris strewn all over the streets.”

People walk by property damaged by Hurricane Beryl, in Union Island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
People walk by property damaged by Hurricane Beryl, in Union Island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, in this screen grab taken from a handout video released on July 2, 2024. (The Agency For Public Information St. Vincent and the Grenadines/via Reuters) (via REUTERS)
Scattered debris and houses with missing roofs are seen in a drone photograph after Hurricane Beryl passed the island of Petite Martinique, Grenada July 2, 2024. (Arthur Daniel/Reuters)
Scattered debris and houses with missing roofs are seen in a drone photograph after Hurricane Beryl passed the island of Petite Martinique, Grenada July 2, 2024. (Arthur Daniel/Reuters) (REUTERS)
A tree lies on the roof of a house in Kingstown, the capital of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
A tree lies on the roof of a house in Kingstown, the capital of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. (Lucanus Ollivierre/AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
A fisherman throws a rope across boats damaged by Hurricane Beryl at Bridgetown Fisheries, Barbados.
A fisherman throws a rope across boats damaged by Hurricane Beryl at Bridgetown Fisheries, Barbados. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP) (AP)
Evacuees from Union Island arrive in Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Evacuees from Union Island arrive in Kingstown on Tuesday. (Lucanus Ollivierre/AP) (AP)
People survey the damage to a home destroyed by Hurricane Beryl, in Ottley Hall, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
People survey the damage to a home destroyed by Hurricane Beryl, in Ottley Hall, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. (Lucanus Ollivierre/AP) (AP)
Several members of the Barbados armed forces use shovels to clear a street of sand as it gets flooded by seawater.
Members of the Barbados armed forces clear a street of sand as it gets flooded by seawater. (Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images) (CHANDAN KHANNA via Getty Images)
About a dozen small boats in the water near shore after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago.
Boats in the water after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. (Andrea De Silva/Reuters) (REUTERS / Reuters)
A flooded building surrounded by water in Christ Church, Barbados.
A flooded business in Christ Church, Barbados. (Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images) (RANDY BROOKS via Getty Images)
Waves crash into a seawall after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain.
Waves crash into a seawall after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain. (Andrea De Silva/Reuters) (Reuters / Reuters)
A man uses a broom to clear water from the front of a damaged restaurant in Christ Church.
A man clears water from a damaged restaurant in Christ Church. (Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images) (RANDY BROOKS via Getty Images)
Three youths near the ocean watch a large wave crashing onto the beach.
Youths watch as Hurricane Beryl passes through Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

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