Hurricane Beryl has begun pounding the southeast Caribbean after becoming the earliest storm of its strength to form in the Atlantic, fuelled by record warm waters.
Hurricane warnings are in effect for Barbados, Grenada, Tobago and St Vincent and the Grenadines as thousands of people hunker down in homes and shelters.
The last strong hurricane to hit the southeast Caribbean was Hurricane Ivan nearly 20 years ago, which killed dozens of people in Grenada.
"It's going to be terrible," Ralph Gonsalves, prime minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, said ahead of the storm and urged people to stay indoors "and wait this monster out".
Forecasters are predicting a life-threatening storm surge from Beryl of up to 3m in some areas. (AP PHOTO)
Beryl was located 125km east of Grenada, with maximum sustained winds of 215km/h, and was moving west-northwest.
The storm had not made landfall yet, but officials in Barbados already received more than a dozen reports of roof damage, fallen trees and downed electric posts across the island, said Kerry Hinds, emergency management director.
Once Beryl passes, drones will assess damage and speed up response, said Wilfred Abrahams, minister of home affairs and information.
A tropical storm warning was in effect for St Lucia, Martinique and Trinidad. A tropical storm watch was issued for Haiti's entire southern coast, and from Punta Palenque in the Dominican Republic west to the border with Haiti.
Forecasters warned of a life-threatening storm surge from the Category 4 storm of up to 3m in areas where Beryl will make landfall, with up to 15cm of rain for Barbados and nearby islands and possibly 25cm in some areas, especially in Grenada and the Grenadines.
"This is a very dangerous situation," warned the National Hurricane Centre in Miami.
The storm was expected to weaken slightly over the Caribbean Sea on a path that would take it just south of Jamaica and later toward Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula as a weaker Category 1.
"It should be emphasized that Beryl is forecast to remain a significant hurricane during its entire trek across the Caribbean region," the National Hurricane Centre said.
Shoppers in St Vincent and the Grenadines stocked up on groceries ahead of the hurricane. (AP PHOTO)
Officials in some southeast Caribbean islands announced controlled shutdowns of electricity and warned of water outages ahead of the storm, urging people to seek shelter.
They warned of landslides and flash flooding as they shuttered schools, airports and government offices.
Beryl was the earliest Category 4 Atlantic hurricane on record, besting Hurricane Dennis, which became a Category 4 storm on July 8, 2005.
"This is a dangerous hurricane for the Windward Islands," said hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts the 2024 hurricane season is likely to be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms.
The forecast predicts as many as 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.
An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
With Reuters