Despite being downgraded from a category five to a category four storm, Beryl has left a trail of destruction in its wake, inflicting serious damage on Grenada’s sister islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique, as well as in Union Island in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

In Jamaica, islanders are assessing the damage after Beryl brought down power lines and forced authorities to enact curfew and evacuation orders. A flash flooding warning is also in place.

"Hurricane Beryl is here,” Jamaica information minister Dana Dixon said in a Twitter/X post on Wednesday (3 July). “A 6am to 6pm curfew is in effect. Please stay indoors and continue making the necessary arrangements to ensure your safety and the safety of your loved ones.”

Her pleas were echoed by prime minister Andrew Holness, who urged residents to remain calm.

The Foreign Office, meanwhile, has updated its travel advice for Jamaica, urging holidaymakers to “follow and monitor local and international weather updates”, as well as the advice of local authorities.

Sandals and Beaches Resorts, which owns and operates around 20 properties across the region, has already started rolling out its response to impacted areas.

"Our charitable arm, The Sandals Foundation, is already working with teams in each of the impacted islands to help with the recovery response,” said Karl Thompson, managing director of Unique Caribbean Holidays Ltd, Sandals’ UK tour operator.

Thompson said agents could be reassured that their clients would be kept up-to-date during such weather events. "Each Sandals and Beaches resort has a long-established set of protocols to not only monitor and prepare for weather incidents, but also to quickly implement a series of escalating actions and safety measures, depending on the nature of the storm,” Thompson continued.

"After more than 43 years of operating across the Caribbean, natural events – including hurricanes – are something we have a great deal of experience with.

“Each resort also maintains emergency supplies, medicines, bottled water and food, as well as generators and other necessary equipment and tools, in order to support its operations when local infrastructure may be impacted.

"All current guests of the resort receive regular updates directly from the resort team and are given clear instructions as to any changes in resort operations and policies designed to ensure everyone’s safety. “

Beryl has since made landfall in the Cayman Islands, bringing storm surges of between two and four feet and sustained winds of 125mph.

“Residents of the Cayman Islands should prepare for worsening conditions as Hurricane Beryl continues to approach,” said the island’s government in a statement. “The storm’s current trajectory brings it dangerously close to the islands, with the potential for significant impacts.”

Looking ahead, the storm is poised to head towards the Gulf of Mexico, affecting stretches of the Yucatan peninsula and Belize over the weekend. 

“There remains uncertainty in the track and intensity forecast of Beryl over the western Gulf of Mexico this weekend,” the US National Hurricane Center said. “Interests in eastern Mexico and southern Texas should monitor the progress of Beryl.”

Over the past few days, the Caribbean travel and tourism industry has banded together in support of those affected by the hurricane, the earliest category five hurricane on record in the north Atlantic region.

The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association has set up a disaster relief fund, while Caribbean Tourism Organisation chair Kenneth Bryan has called for preparedness and solidarity during the hurricane season.