Hurricane Dean Pummels Jamaica

[appleannie1]

KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) - Hurricane Dean pummeled Jamaica with gusting winds and torrential rains Sunday after the prime minister made a last-minute plea for residents to abandon their homes and head for shelter. Many residents ignored the call, however, while tourists holed up in resorts with hurricane-proof walls.

Dean, which had already killed eight people on its destructive march across the Caribbean, triggered evacuation calls from the Cayman Islands to Texas, and forced the Space Shuttle to cut short its mission. Cruise ships changed course to avoid the storm, but some tourists in Jamaica could not get away before the island closed its airports late Saturday.

The National Hurricane Center said the first hurricane of the Atlantic season was projected to reach a Category 5 classification with sustained winds of 160 mph before crashing into the Cayman Islands on Monday and Mexico's Yucatan peninsula after that. The Mexican mainland or Texas could be hit later.

Hurricane-force winds began lashing Jamaica on Sunday afternoon, said meteorologist Rebecca Waddington at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Forecasters said Jamaica would take a near-direct hit with Dean's eye passing just to the south later Sunday night.

The government set up more than 1,000 shelters in converted schools, churches and the indoor national sports arena. Authorities urged people to take cover from the storm, which had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph and was expected to dump up to 20 inches of rain on the island.

But only 47 shelters were occupied as the storm began hitting, said Cecil Bailey of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management.

``For the last time, I'm asking you to leave or you will be in danger,'' Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller urged residents earlier as the storm loomed offshore.

As of 8 p.m. Sunday, Dean was located 70 miles west-southwest of Kingston and was traveling west at 20 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

George Lee, mayor of the Portmore community near the capital Kingston, said appeals to evacuate had gone unheeded. Some islanders said they were afraid for their belongings if they moved to shelters.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6862080,00.html

[lost-in-nj]

1. .....

:cry: :cry:

omg I hope everyone is ok......


lost

[HeeBGBz]

2. Listening to the live stream from Nationwide Radio

http://www.nationwidenewsnetwork.com/

Doing a great job with call ins and reports across the island.

[fed-up]

5. for some reason I can't make the work on my comp-can you give brief updates?

[appleannie1]

3. I have a feeling the death toll

in Jamaica is going to be high. And look at what they are predicting the sustained winds to be when it hits the Caymens. 160MPH

[lovuian]

4. OMG

thats horrific