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| Haiti issues red alert warning as Caribbean braces for Hurricane Matthew | Haiti issues red alert warning as Caribbean braces for Hurricane Matthew |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Haiti and Jamaica has urged residents in vulnerable coastal areas to evacuate, and Cuba suspended flights on Sunday as torrential rain from Hurricane Matthew, the strongest storm to hit the Caribbean nations since 2007, lashed the region. | Haiti and Jamaica has urged residents in vulnerable coastal areas to evacuate, and Cuba suspended flights on Sunday as torrential rain from Hurricane Matthew, the strongest storm to hit the Caribbean nations since 2007, lashed the region. |
| Despite the warnings and mounting fears, 2,000 people in one coastal town refused to evacuate. | |
| Matthew’s slow-moving center is expected to bear down on south-western Haiti and Jamaica on Monday as a major storm bringing 145 miles-per-hour (230 km-per-hour) winds and rain that could trigger floods and landslides, the US National Hurricane Center said. | Matthew’s slow-moving center is expected to bear down on south-western Haiti and Jamaica on Monday as a major storm bringing 145 miles-per-hour (230 km-per-hour) winds and rain that could trigger floods and landslides, the US National Hurricane Center said. |
| Up to 40 inches of rain, or more than a metre, could fall on some parts of southern Haiti, forecasters said. | Up to 40 inches of rain, or more than a metre, could fall on some parts of southern Haiti, forecasters said. |
| Haitian officials said residents of the La Savane neighborhood of Les Cayes refused to heed government calls to move out of their homes on the water’s edge, despite being just a few miles from where the center of the hurricane is forecast to make landfall. | |
| The chief of police for the region, Luc Pierre, said it was almost impossible to force such a large number of people to leave their homes. | |
| “I would have to arrest all those people and take them to a safe place, this is very difficult,” he said, adding that the power had already gone off in the town. | |
| Poor Haitians are at times reluctant to leave their homes even when facing impending storms because of fears their belongings might get stolen when they leave. | |
| Only a few families had opted to move to a high school in La Savane, designated as a shelter for up to 600 people. They only had candlelight as there was no electricity. | |
| “There are babies crying here; there is nothing at all,” said Nadja, 32, who is pregnant with her fourth child. | |
| Eastern Cuba will also feel bands of fierce wind and rain on Monday, the agency said. | Eastern Cuba will also feel bands of fierce wind and rain on Monday, the agency said. |
| “We are very worried by the situation,” Haitian interior minister Francois Anick Joseph said at an operations center in Port-au-Prince. “We want everybody to know that it is real.” | “We are very worried by the situation,” Haitian interior minister Francois Anick Joseph said at an operations center in Port-au-Prince. “We want everybody to know that it is real.” |
| Here are the key messages from NHC regarding Category 4 #hurricane #Matthew at 5pm EDT Sunday https://t.co/T8bABTTyjI @NHCDirector @NOAA pic.twitter.com/tlGgHfTEEf | Here are the key messages from NHC regarding Category 4 #hurricane #Matthew at 5pm EDT Sunday https://t.co/T8bABTTyjI @NHCDirector @NOAA pic.twitter.com/tlGgHfTEEf |
| He said 1,300 shelters had been set up, with the capacity to hold 340,000 people. | He said 1,300 shelters had been set up, with the capacity to hold 340,000 people. |
| One person was swept away by high waves on Saturday despite government warnings to stay out of the sea, Anick Joseph said. | One person was swept away by high waves on Saturday despite government warnings to stay out of the sea, Anick Joseph said. |
| The prime minister’s office issued a red alert warning for landslides, high waves and floods. | The prime minister’s office issued a red alert warning for landslides, high waves and floods. |
| In Kingston, Jamaica, major roads and waterways flooded as the first bands from Matthew lashed the island. Cars stalled as rain-drenched drivers tried to push vehicles through streets that flooded within minutes of the downpour starting. | In Kingston, Jamaica, major roads and waterways flooded as the first bands from Matthew lashed the island. Cars stalled as rain-drenched drivers tried to push vehicles through streets that flooded within minutes of the downpour starting. |
| Matthew was about 270 miles (435 km) south-east of Kingston on Sunday afternoon and moving north-west at 5 mph (7 kph), with a turn to the north expected overnight. The hurricane center ranked it at Category 4 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity. | Matthew was about 270 miles (435 km) south-east of Kingston on Sunday afternoon and moving north-west at 5 mph (7 kph), with a turn to the north expected overnight. The hurricane center ranked it at Category 4 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity. |
| “Slow motion is almost always a bad thing for any land area impacted,” said John Cangialosi, a hurricane specialist at the center. Matthew is expected to remain a powerful hurricane into Tuesday, the center said. | “Slow motion is almost always a bad thing for any land area impacted,” said John Cangialosi, a hurricane specialist at the center. Matthew is expected to remain a powerful hurricane into Tuesday, the center said. |
| Matthew is the most powerful hurricane to form over the Atlantic since Felix in 2007. | Matthew is the most powerful hurricane to form over the Atlantic since Felix in 2007. |
| Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas, with precarious living conditions for most of its people making it particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. More than 200,000 people were killed when a 7-magnitude earthquake struck the country in 2010. | Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas, with precarious living conditions for most of its people making it particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. More than 200,000 people were killed when a 7-magnitude earthquake struck the country in 2010. |
| The hurricane has also led to US authorities evacuating non-essential personnel from the navy base at Guantánamo Bay. | The hurricane has also led to US authorities evacuating non-essential personnel from the navy base at Guantánamo Bay. |
| Matthew is expected to reach Cuba late on Monday, potentially making a direct hit on Guantánamo. Evacuated non-essential personnel included about 700 family members of those serving there. | Matthew is expected to reach Cuba late on Monday, potentially making a direct hit on Guantánamo. Evacuated non-essential personnel included about 700 family members of those serving there. |
| Everyone remaining behind was being told to take shelter, said Julie Ann Ripley, a spokeswoman. There are about 5,500 people living on the base, including 61 men held at the detention center. | Everyone remaining behind was being told to take shelter, said Julie Ann Ripley, a spokeswoman. There are about 5,500 people living on the base, including 61 men held at the detention center. |