Elsa becomes first hurricane of season after rains lash Caribbean

ELSA HAS strengthened into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season as it battered the eastern Caribbean, where officials closed schools, businesses and airports.

Heavy rains and winds lashed Barbados as the Category 1 storm headed for islands including St Vincent and the Grenadines, which are struggling to recover from recent massive volcanic eruptions.

Elsa was located about 75 miles east of St Vincent and was moving west-northwest at 28mph. It had maximum sustained winds of 75mph, according to the National Hurricane Centre in Miami.

“That level of sustained wind can blow down a lot of buildings and cause a lot of damage,” said St Vincent Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.

“I am pleading with you. Let us not take this hurricane lightly. This is not the time to play the fool.”

A hurricane warning was in effect for Barbados, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

The long-term track showed the storm rolling towards the Dominican Republic and Haiti as a hurricane before weakening back to tropical storm force and potentially heading in the direction of Florida by early Tuesday.

Authorities opened dozens of shelters in St Vincent and urged people to evacuate if they lived near a valley, given the threat of flash flooding, mudslides and lahars, especially in the northern part of the island where La Soufriere volcano is located.

“Do not wait until it’s too late to go to a shelter,” Mr Gonsalves said.

He said 94 shelters were open, a smaller number than in previous years because some 2,000 people remain in other shelters following massive volcanic eruptions that began in early April.

Elsa is the earliest fifth-named storm on record, beating last year’s Eduardo, which formed on July 6, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.