Hurricane Beryl update: Storm regains strength as it barrels toward Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and Tulum

Led by Indian skipper Rohit Sharma, the men’s team on Sunday won the T20 World Cup against South Africa in a nail-biter that broke a 12-year unsuccessful streak.

The Independent’s Arpan Rai has the story:

Hurricane Beryl has strengthened back into a Category 3 storm as it barrels toward the Yucatan Peninsula on Friday morning.

The hurricane is around 90 miles (140km) east-southeast of Tulum, Mexico, and is sustaining maximum winds of 115mph (185km/h).

The National Hurricane Center warned in their 1am CDT bulletin that conditions are soon to deteriorate for the Yucatan Peninsula, bringing hurricane-force winds, dangerous storm surge, and damaging waves expected to begin.

Beryl’s center is expected to make landfall on the Yucatan Peninsula later this morning, before emerging over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico tonight, then moving toward northeastern Mexico and southern Texas by the end of the weekend.

As Beryl crosses the Yucatan Peninsula, “rapid weakening” of the hurricane is expected, however, a “slow re-intensification” is also predicted as Beryl moves over the Gulf of Mexico.

Record-breaking hurricanes like Beryl — the earliest recorded Category 5 storm — are being driven in part by the climate crisis.

“It’s really scary stuff,” Steve Maximay, a climate and agriculture expert in Grenada, previously told The Independent.

”When you talk about Category 4 and 5, there are very few systems or protocols that can prepare you for that,” Maximay continued. “You can have resilient buildings but category five winds can move concrete structures.”

Hurricane Beryl’s growth into a Category 5 storm can be attributed to record-warm ocean temperatures. High water temperatures can contribute to sea level rise and hurt marine life in addition to fueling strong storms like Hurricane Beryl. Ocean temperatures will likely continue to rise even if we curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to NOAA.

Island nations are at the front lines of the climate crisis, given their vulnerability to violent storms and sea-level rise.

The Alliance of Small Island States, an organization designed to create a unified voice for small island nations to address the ongoing climate crisis, denounced the climate crisis and its impact on island nations.

“We continue to be sacrificed on the frontlines of a climate crisis we did not cause,” the statement said. “Our sea temperatures grow warmer, encouraging storms to strengthen at alarming speed and increasing the dire threat to our developing countries. The increased danger is evident for the world to see.”

“If the world does not stand with [Small Island Developing States] now, it is only a matter of time before we are all lost,” the alliance continued.

Sophie Powell, chief of advocacy for the United Kingdom-based non-profit Christian Aid, highlighted the role the climate crisis has played in Hurricane Beryl’s devastation.

“The people picking through the wreckage of such a devastating storm have done nothing to cause the climate crisis,” Powell said in a statement. “The carbon emissions of these small, low-lying islands are miniscule yet the consequences to their lives of climate breakdown are vast.”

Googlebox favorites Julie and Tom Malone have revealed they are stuck in Jamaica as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall.

The Channel 4 couple had oped for some sun and relaxation after jetting off to Jamaica for their summer holiday, but have instead got caught up in the Category 4 hurricane.

Beryl hit Jamaica earlier this week, with life-threatening rain, 145mph winds and storm surge, with the storm knocking down power lines in Portland.

The United Nations will put $4 million towards aid efforts in Jamaica, Grenada and St Vincent and the Grenadines in the wake of Hurricane Beryl, the BBC reports.

Earlier this week, the UN said officials in Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines are working closely with local leaders to help with recovery efforts.

“To date, Grenada and St Vincent’s and the Grenadines have reported hundreds of people in shelters,” a UN spokesperson said.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has asked for the international community to “show solidarity” with all the Caribbean countries in Hurricane Beryl’s path, the spokesperson said.

Mexican officials evacuated sea turtle eggs from beaches ahead of Hurricane Beryl, the Associated Press reports.

For some eggs, experts transferred them to safer areas. In other cases, they created corrals with sandbags to keep the eggs safe where they were laid, the outlet reports.

“Look, it’s not the best thing to do, but we are facing an emergency in which if they don’t take them out, they all could be lost,” biologist Graciela Tiburcio told the AP.

“In a normal situation this would not be right, because this will surely cause mortality,” Tiburcio continued. “There will be a lower rate of hatched eggs, that is the reality. But it’s also a reality that if the nests are left there, they’ll all be lost.”

AccuWeather Meteorologist Geoff Cornish says Hurricane Beryl could bring four to eight inches of rain to Brownsville, Texas if it hits the region early next week.

“San Antonio and Austin will likely see several inches of rain from Beryl as well,” Cornish said on Thursday.

AccuWeather’s Paul Pastelok warns the storm could stall in the Gulf Coast, driving longer storm conditions.

“There is a chance that this storm may stall once it gets onshore in northern Mexico and southern Texas, which could lead to more rainfall and flooding concerns,” Pastelok said. The National Weather Service said Beryl has the potential to hit Texas on Monday into Tuesday.

For now, the Category 2 storm is set to make landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula in the coming hours.