Hurricane Beryl Strengthens To Category 5 Storm After Hitting Caribbean

Hurricane Beryl is now the earliest category 5 storm in the Atlantic on record.

Hurricane Beryl strengthened into a top-level category 5 storm late Monday after it swept across several islands in the southeastern Caribbean, dumping heavy rain and unleashing devastating winds.

Beryl is now the earliest category 5 storm in the Atlantic on record, and has developed into a "potentially catastrophic" hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 160 miles (260 kilometres) per hour, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

Early in the day, Grenada's Carriacou Island took a direct hit from the storm's "extremely dangerous eyewall," with sustained winds at upwards of 150 miles, the NHC said.