Hurricane Beryl, which has restrengthened to a Category 3 storm, is approaching the Yucatán Peninsula and Mexico, bringing damaging winds and a storm surge of up to 5 feet. The hurricane has already caused nine deaths in Venezuela, Jamaica, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, resulting in severe damage to many homes. The Yucatán Peninsula is under a hurricane warning and is expected to experience hurricane-force winds overnight and into Friday. Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has urged people to move to higher ground or seek shelter elsewhere to prioritize life over material possessions. Despite weakening to a Category 2 storm earlier, Beryl has strengthened again to Category 3 with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph. Hurricane warnings are in place along the coast of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. The storm is projected to make landfall in Tulum on Friday morning, with damaging winds and powerful waves hitting the region before then. Beryl is expected to weaken after landfall, move into the Gulf of Mexico, regain some strength, and then head toward northeastern Mexico or southern Texas. The formation and strength of Beryl have set records, with rapid intensification becoming more common due to increasing sea surface temperatures caused by climate change. Beryl is the first Category 4 hurricane on record to form in June and the earliest Category 4 storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. When it became a Category 5 storm with maximum sustained winds of 165 mph, it became the strongest hurricane ever recorded in July.
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Beryl strengthens as it heads towards Mexico
