Hurricane Beryl is roaring toward Jamaica, with islanders scrambling to make preparations after the powerful Category four storm killed at least six people and caused significant damage in the south-east Caribbean.
As Beryl barrelled through the Caribbean Sea, rescue crews in the south-eastern islands fanned out to determine the extent of the damage the hurricane inflicted on Carriacou, an island in Grenada.
Three people were reportedly killed in Grenada and Carriacou — and another in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, officials said.
Two other deaths were reported in northern Venezuela, where five people are missing.
About 25,000 people in that area are also affected by heavy rainfall from the hurricane.
One death in Grenada occurred after a tree fell on to a house, Environment Minister Kerryne James said.
She said Carriacou and Petit Martinique sustained the greatest damage, with scores of homes and businesses flattened in Carriacou.
Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell said on Tuesday there was no power, roads were impassable and the possible rise of the death toll "remains a grim reality".
He called the scenes "Armageddon-like", noting the small islands Carriacou and Petite Martinique bore the brunt of the destruction.
Grenada, known as the "spice isle" is one of the world's top exporters of nutmeg.
Mr Mitchell said the bulk of the spices are grown in the northern part of the country, which was hit hardest by Beryl.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves has promised to rebuild the archipelago.
He noted 90 per cent of homes on Union Island were destroyed, and that "similar levels of devastation" were expected on the islands of Mayreau and Canouan.
"The hurricane has come and gone, and it has left in its wake immense destruction," Mr Gonsalves said.
By AP/ABC
Original article link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-03/six-dead-in-caribbean-as-hurricane-beryl-rips-toward-jamaica/104055400
