Tropical Storm Ernesto slammed into Cuba early on Monday and headed towards Florida, which it could hit later in the week as a revived hurricane.
Cuban authorities said they had evacuated tens of thousands of people from south-eastern areas of the country before the storm barrelled ashore.
In Florida, where Ernesto was expected to make landfall later in the week, Governor Jeb Bush, brother of the United States president, ordered a state of emergency, saying the south-eastern state ”may be threatened by a major disaster”.
Authorities ordered all visitors and non-residents in the Florida Keys to head to safety.
A chain of islands connected to the mainland by a series of bridges and a single road, the Florida Keys are a major tourist destination.
The storm’s projected track indicates Ernesto would cross Cuba’s eastern tip, sweep over the northern Keys late on Tuesday or early Wednesday, and slam ashore just south of Miami a few hours later.
Experts do not rule out a deviation from the anticipated track, and projections show it is also possible the hurricane could make landfall anywhere within Florida.
If the forecast holds, the storm will not enter the Gulf of Mexico where warm waters tend to fuel such weather systems.
Earlier projections had suggested it would barrel over the Gulf of Mexico exactly one year after Hurricane Katrina wrought devastation along the US coast.
Ernesto became this year’s first Atlantic hurricane on Sunday morning, but was downgraded to a tropical storm later in the day. The Miami-based National Hurricane Centre warned, however, that it could regain hurricane strength.
The storm dumped torrential rains on Haiti as it passed the Caribbean country’s south-western tip, prompting authorities to evacuate people living in fragile homes along threatened areas, and request assistance from United Nations troops deployed in the troubled nation.
Telephone lines were down in parts of Haiti and domestic flights were suspended.
In Florida, authorities urged residents of southern Florida to finalise ”disaster plans” and store up on key supplies.
Forecasters said people in Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula should also keep a close eye on the storm’s progress in case it makes an unexpected turn. — AFP
