Hurricane Beryl Smashes Records, Intensifies Rapidly

Hurricane Beryl broke records as the earliest Category 4 and 5 storms, intensifying rapidly and gaining 95 mph in wind speed in under 48 hours.

"Beryl transitioned from a tropical storm to a major hurricane with huge increases in wind speed..."

Breaking it Down:

• July 1, 2024: Beryl becomes the earliest Cat 4, previously held by Hurricane Dennis in 2005.
• July 2, 2024: It transitions to a Cat 5, breaking the record by 2 weeks. The only July Atlantic Cat 5 was Hurricane Emily in 2005.
• June 28, 2024: Tropical depression and storm, escalated to Cat 4 in 4 days.

Hurricane Comparison:

	Hurricane Katrina	Hurricane Beryl
Status	2005 Dates	2024 Dates
Tropical Depression	Aug 23	Jun 28
Tropical Storm	Aug 24	Jun 28
Cat 4	Aug 28	Jul 1
Cat 5	Aug 28	Jul 2
1st Landfall	Aug 29, Buras, LA	Jul 1, Grenada
2nd Landfall	Aug 29, LA-MS Border	Jul 5, Tulum, Mexico
3rd Landfall	Aug 29, LA-MS Border	Jul 8, Matagorda, TX

Katrina's Legacy:

• One of the costliest/deadliest recorded US hurricanes.
• 1,833 deaths, $108 billion in damage (NWS)
• Max wind speeds ~140 mph at landfall.
• Beryl: 12 deaths as of Monday, 11 in the Caribbean, 1 in Texas.
• Beryl's wind speeds: 165 mph peak on July 2.