Hurricane Beryl is a Category 4 storm as it moves into the Caribbean. Beryl is the first hurricane in what is expected to be a very busy season. LSU climatologist Barry Keim says this early start is due to factors such as an absence of wind shears to help dissipate hurricane winds and abnormally warm sea surface temperatures.
“I mean the sea surface temperatures right now are kind of the average sea surface temperatures for early to mid-August,” he says.
Early to mid-August is usually when Category 4 hurricanes form.
Keim says Beryl has already set a record for the earliest Category 4 hurricane to form in a season, as well as the first Category 4 hurricane to form in June, “so we’re running six weeks ahead of schedule, and that does not bode well for the rest of the season.”
NOAA has forecasted an above-average hurricane season this year, predicting 17 to 25 named storms including 8 to 13 hurricanes and 4 to 7 major hurricanes.
Keim says Beryl is likely to miss Louisiana, as the National Hurricane Center’s official forecast has Beryl hitting the Yucatan peninsula later this week. However, Keim says there are a couple of models showing a turn towards the Gulf Coast.
“Louisiana should keep a watch on this storm. But it’s most likely going to be more of a Mexico problem than a Louisiana problem,” he explains.
Whether Beryl threatens Louisiana or not, Keim encourages residents to start hurricane prepping if they haven’t already.
