Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders Sunday have postponed their annual summit that was due to begin in Grenada this week “to a date to be determined” as several Caribbean countries brace for the passage of a very dangerous Hurricane Beryl.
Grenada was due to host the July 3-5 summit, but the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) has been reliably informed that following consultations with the Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell, and the CARICOM Bureau, “it is agreed that the Meetings in Grenada later this week will be postponed to a date to be determine.”
“This took into consideration that Hurricane Beryl strengthened overnight to a Category 3 and will pass south of Barbados and then St. Vincent and the Grenadines overnight. From there its projected path takes it near Haiti, Jamaica and then Belize by the end of the week,” the sources told CMC.
They said that airline travel is already being impacted with schedule changes already happening and more is expected.
“Most member states, including host country Grenada, will be dealing with emergency preparations and the aftereffects. The primary focus across the Community is preparing for the impact and protecting the safety and security of the people,” the sources said, adding that regional countries are expected to be informed of the decision “very shortly”.
Meanwhile, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) in its latest bulletin said that the hurricane is about 420 miles east south-east of Barbados with maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour (mph).
It is moving forward at 21 mph and that hurricane warnings are in effect for Tobago, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadine Islands and Grenada.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for Martinique and a tropical storm watch is in effect for Dominica.
The eye of Hurricane Beryl was located near latitude 10.6 North, longitude 53.9 West.
“Beryl is moving toward the west near 21 mph. A continued quick westward to west-north-westward motion is expected during the next few days.
“On the forecast track, the centre of Beryl is expected to move across the Windward Islands early on Monday and across the southeastern Caribbean Sea Monday night and Tuesday.
The NHC said that continued rapid strengthening is forecast over the next day or so, and Beryl is expected to become an extremely dangerous category 4 hurricane before it reaches the Windward Islands. —BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC)