Hurricane Beryl supercharged by ‘crazy’ ocean temperatures, experts say
Warning after intensification of storm aided by unusually hot ocean waters in much of Beryl’s path

Oliver Milman
Tue 9 Jul 2024 06.00 EDT

Hurricane Beryl, which slammed into Texas on Monday after wreaking havoc in the Caribbean, was supercharged by “absolutely crazy” ocean temperatures that are likely to fuel further violent storms in the coming months, scientists have warned.

Beryl left more than 2m people without power after making landfall near Houston as a category one storm, after having rampaged through the Caribbean as a category 5 hurricane, with wind speeds reaching 165mph, killing 11 people.

There has never been a category 5 Atlantic hurricane this early in the year before, with most major storms forming closer to September. Beryl, however, rapidly accelerated from a minor storm to a category four event in just two days.

This deadly intensification was aided by unusually hot ocean temperatures along much of Beryl’s path, scientists say, with seawater heated by the climate crisis helping provide the storm with extra energy over the past 10 days.

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