Hurricane Beryl Wreaks Havoc Across Caribbean and Mexico

Hurricane Beryl, a Category 2 storm, made landfall on Mexico's coast near Tulum after causing extensive damage in the eastern Caribbean. Expected to weaken as it crosses the Yucatan Peninsula, Beryl may regain strength in the Gulf of Mexico and head toward northern Mexico near the Texas border.

Hurricane Beryl made landfall on Mexico's coast near the popular resort town of Tulum as a formidable Category 2 storm early Friday, leaving a wide path of destruction in the eastern Caribbean.

According to the US National Hurricane Centre, Beryl is projected to rapidly diminish to a tropical storm as it traverses the Yucatan Peninsula. However, once it enters the warmer waters of the Gulf of Mexico, it is anticipated to regain hurricane strength.

Beryl is forecast to continue its path towards northern Mexico near the Texas border, an area already waterlogged by Tropical Storm Alberto just weeks earlier. Having once been the earliest storm to reach Category 5 in the Atlantic, Beryl has wreaked havoc in Jamaica, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Barbados in recent days. Mexican authorities evacuated some tourists and residents from low-lying areas around the Yucatan peninsula before landfall, but tens of thousands remained to weather the storm's 100 mph (160 kph) winds and anticipated storm surge.

(Disclaimer: With inputs from agencies.)