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Deadly hurricane heads for Havana Hurricane Ike closes in on Havana
(about 2 hours later)
Hurricane Ike is heading towards the Cuban capital, Havana, after causing widespread flooding and damage to the country's eastern provinces. Fierce winds are pounding the Cuban capital, as Hurricane Ike works its way along the island's south-west coast.
Tens of thousands of people are being moved from vulnerable areas and crumbling buildings in the capital. The eye of the storm remains just off shore with huge waves pounding coastal regions, while heavy rain is causing floods and mudslides on higher ground.
Ike battered the east of the island with torrential rain and giant waves on Monday, killing four people. Ike is forecast to hit land again and has prompted the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from Havana.
It has weakened to a Category One storm, but forecasters say it could strengthen before hitting Havana. Four people are known to have died so far in the storm, which battered the east of the island on Monday.
Hurricane Ike's projected pathEnlarge Map Ike earlier caused 61 deaths in Haiti and reportedly damaged 80% of the homes in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Hurricane Ike's projected pathEnlarge Map
The hurricane first came ashore in Cuba on Monday near Punta Lucrecia in the state of Holguin, about 510 miles (825km) south-east of Havana. It is the first time in several years that a hurricane has claimed lives in Cuba, which is renowned for its well-organised mass evacuations.
State television broadcast pictures of the accompanying storm surge washing over coastal defences and sending waves crashing into buildings. State television said almost 1.25 million people had been moved to shelters so far - more than one tenth of the island's population.
Sustained winds of about 160km/h (100mph) tore the roofs off many buildings, knocked down trees and destroyed crops. The authorities said late on Monday that a further 175,000 people were being evacuated from Havana; particularly those living in old, unstable apartment blocks that may not be able to withstand a direct hit by hurricane-force winds.
The Cuban authorities have put the entire population on maximum alert.
Deadly path
At 1200GMT, the eye of the storm was about 40 miles (65km) south of Havana, packing sustained winds of 80mph (130km/h).
The Category One storm was moving west-north-west at 13mph, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
President Raul Castro and his brother Fidel were monitoring the storm "minute by minute", state television said.
RED CROSS APPEAL The charity is accepting donations to help people in the CaribbeanDonations can be made on 0845 053 53 53 or via its website Havana prepares for the worstCaribbean's devastating seasonGuide: How hurricanes form
The hurricane first came ashore in Cuba on Monday near Punta Lucrecia in the state of Holguin, about 510 miles south-east of Havana.
Winds of about 100mph tore the roofs off many buildings, knocked down trees and destroyed crops.
One person was killed by a falling tree, an elderly woman died when her house collapsed and two others were electrocuted.One person was killed by a falling tree, an elderly woman died when her house collapsed and two others were electrocuted.
As Ike moved back out to sea, the US National Hurricane Center downgraded it to a Category One hurricane after its maximum sustained winds dropped to about 130km/h (80mph). As Ike moved back out to sea, the US National Hurricane Center downgraded it to a Category One after its maximum sustained winds dropped to about 80mph.
However, it said a slight increase in intensity was possible if the storm's centre remained over water. However, it said a slight increase in intensity was possible while the storm's centre remained over the warm Caribbean waters.
The storm left rubble strewn in the streets of Camaguey, in central Cuba The eye of the storm is forecast to cross into the south-eastern Gulf of Mexico by Tuesday night.
The eye of the storm is forecast to continue westward along Cuba's southern coast before hitting western Cuba on Tuesday morning and emerging into the south-eastern Gulf of Mexico by Tuesday night. Louisiana's governor has warned coastal residents to be prepared to move inland, although the NHC said it was still too early to tell in which direction Ike would move.
The Cuban authorities have put the entire population on maximum alert and hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated to shelters or moved to higher ground. Restoration fears
With Hurricane Gustav striking just a week ago, Cuba's internationally acclaimed emergency services have been stretched to the limit, the BBC's Michael Voss in Havana says.
Gustav caused serious damage to the western side of the island, damaging almost 100,000 homes.
"In all of Cuba's history, we have never had two hurricanes this close together," said Jose Rubiera, head of Cuba's meteorological service.
Havana alert
A direct hit on Havana, a densely populated city of two million people, with crumbling colonial buildings, could be devastating.A direct hit on Havana, a densely populated city of two million people, with crumbling colonial buildings, could be devastating.
The capital has been put on alert as authorities prepared to evacuate residents from some of the older buildings. RECENT MAJOR STORMS Hurricane Ike: SeptemberTropical Storm Hanna: SeptemberHurricane Gustav: August, SeptemberTropical Storm Fay: August class="" href="/1/hi/in_pictures/7603227.stm">In pictures: Hurricane Ike class="" href="/1/hi/world/americas/7602704.stm">Eyewitness: Waiting for Ike class="" href="/1/hi/world/americas/7604741.stm">Hurricane Ike: Cubans' stories The United Nations cultural agency, Unesco, has offered to help the Cuban government make good any damage to heritage sites and important buildings.
RED CROSS APPEAL The charity is accepting donations to help people in the CaribbeanDonations can be made on 0845 053 53 53 or via its website Havana prepares for the worstCaribbean's devastating season
The United Nations cultural agency, Unesco, has offered to help the Cuban government make good any damage to heritage sites and important buildings.
The agency's director in Havana, Herman van Hooff, said that the latest storm could be a setback to restoration work.The agency's director in Havana, Herman van Hooff, said that the latest storm could be a setback to restoration work.
"Since the [1990s] there has been a very strong management system in place for the old Havana area, and a lot has been restored since then."Since the [1990s] there has been a very strong management system in place for the old Havana area, and a lot has been restored since then.
"There is still a lot of fabric, a lot of architecture, a lot of housing that is in a fragile state, so any impact by a hurricane, be it wind or rain, is a great concern to everybody," he told the BBC."There is still a lot of fabric, a lot of architecture, a lot of housing that is in a fragile state, so any impact by a hurricane, be it wind or rain, is a great concern to everybody," he told the BBC.
Among those evacuated from Cuba before the arrival of Ike were 15,000 tourists.Among those evacuated from Cuba before the arrival of Ike were 15,000 tourists.
North of Cuba, in the Florida Keys, authorities called off an evacuation order as it appeared the storm would pass to the south. Cuba is still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Gustav, which hit a week ago, damaging almost 100,000 homes in the west of the island.
But residents who had left the string of islands were urged to stay away until Wednesday, until it was clear which way Ike was heading. Ike earlier caused 66 deaths in Haiti and reportedly damaged 80% of the homes in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency and warned coastal residents to be prepared to move inland for the second time in 10 days. Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, has endured the onslaught of four tropical storms in a three-week period, causing more than 550 deaths.
But the NHC said it was still too early to tell which direction Ike would move in once it entered the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday night.
Haitian appeal
Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, has endured the onslaught of four tropical storms in a three-week period, causing 331 deaths.
RECENT MAJOR STORMS Hurricane Ike: SeptemberTropical Storm Hanna: SeptemberHurricane Gustav: August, SeptemberTropical Storm Fay: August In pictures: Hurricane IkeEyewitness: Waiting for IkeHurricane Ike: Cubans' storiesGuide: How hurricanes form Heavy rains and flooding sparked by the outer bands of Hurricane Ike killed at least 61 people in Cabaret, to the north of the capital Port-au-Prince.
"The whole village is flooded," said local civil protection official Moise Jean-Pierre. "The death toll could go higher."
The destruction in Haiti has been described as catastrophic.
The newly installed Prime Minister, Michele Pierre Louis, has launched a fresh appeal for international aid.
She called in particular for helicopters to bring those left stranded by the floods to safety.
Are you in the Caribbean? Have you been affected by the storms? What preparations have you made to deal with the adverse weather? Send us your comments and experiences using the form below.Are you in the Caribbean? Have you been affected by the storms? What preparations have you made to deal with the adverse weather? Send us your comments and experiences using the form below.
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