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Hurricane Beryl is the first hurricane of the season after forming in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Forecaster with the National Hurricane Center Robbie Berg says it’s one of the tiniest hurricanes they have ever seen.

“Right now it looks like the hurricane force winds only extend out about 10 miles from the center and the eye itself, it’s been coming and going but when we have seen it, it’s only been about five miles wide.”

Berg says tiny Hurricane Beryl is moving west at about 15 miles per hour towards the Lesser Antilles, but might not be able to hold together.

“With systems this small they are very fragile so anytime the environment gets more hostile they are going to go down pretty quickly. So I’d say at this point we are thinking once it reaches the Caribbean it could weaken.”

Berg says Beryl is the second named storm of the 2018 season. Earlier this week researchers at Colorado State University downgraded its forecast for the number of named storms, now anticipating a below average season. Berg says it’s not unusual to see a hurricane form this early in the season.

“We do observe them every few years so I wouldn’t say it’s abnormal to have a July hurricane but we just don’t see them every year.”

The impact of Hurricane Beryl on the Gulf of Mexico is still unclear.

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