
MSNBC Nov 8, 08 6:11 PM CST
(Newser)
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Hurricane Paloma slammed into Cuba today after nearly 1 million people fled the country's southern coast, MSNBC reports. Fidel Castro warned that the Category 4 storm, roaring at up to 145 mph, would likely hobble roads and destroy crops planted after storms struck the island nation this summer. Paloma had already flooded low-lying regions and knocked out power in most of Grand Cayman Island.
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Hurricane could threaten Puerto Rico as Category 2

Bloomberg Oct 15, 08 3:04 PM CDT
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Caribbean oil refineries are under threat from Hurricane Omar, whose 85-mph winds roared through St. Croix today, Bloomberg reports. It could hit the Virgin Islands, home to one of the hemisphere's largest refineries, as a Category 2 storm tomorrow. Puerto Rico may be in line for 20 inches of rain and life-threatening floods, forecasters say.
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Canadian provinces may take brunt of landfall tomorrow

Associated Press Sep 27, 08 3:39 PM CDT
(AP)
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A rare hurricane watch was posted for part of the Maine coast today as Tropical Storm Kyle was upgraded to hurricane strength, the AP reports. Kyle's center was forecast to be near eastern New England or the Canadian Maritime provinces late tomorrow. "Hurricane season isn't over, " a Maine emergency director said. "It's been a very active season."
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Tropical Storm Kyle brews south of Bermuda

Bloomberg Sep 26, 08 9:40 AM CDT
(Newser)
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A storm system threatened East Coast cities with heavy winds and rain, and Tropical Storm Kyle moved toward hurricane strength further out in the Atlantic, Bloomberg reports. Flights were delayed along the coast, with planes in New York City waiting 90 minutes or more on runways. Meanwhile, Kyle, 645 miles south-southwest of Bermuda, was expected off the coast of New England this weekend.
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Officials don't want immigration enforcement to impede evacuations

Christian Science Monitor Sep 12, 08 1:59 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The federal government has declared a “hurricane amnesty” in an attempt to get Texas’ illegal immigrants out of Hurricane Ike’s way, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Immigration officials will not attempt to arrest illegals in shelters or along common evacuation routes. The Red Cross has begun outreach programs informing undocumented residents of the amnesty today, the first day of mandatory evacuations.
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Prediction of 22-foot storm surge brings dire evacuation warning from weather service

CNN Sep 12, 08 5:06 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Refusing to evacuate could be the last mistake residents living in hurricane-vulnerable homes in coastal Texas ever make, the National Weather Service has warned. The dire warning of "certain death" facing some single-family home dwellers came as forecasters predicted a storm surge of up to 22 feet along Galveston Bay, CNN reports. Almost 1 million people have been ordered to evacuate.
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Exodus from low-lying areas accelerates as hurricane approaches

Houston Chronicle Sep 11, 08 5:07 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Thousands have fled low-lying areas of Texas in the projected path of Hurricane Ike, the Houston Chronicle reports. The storm is expected to get stronger before making landfall along the coast this weekend. Texas has troops and 1,350 buses on standby for evacuations. As many as a million people may move to higher ground, officials predict.
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'Dynamic' approach distributes response burden

Christian Science Monitor Sep 8, 08 10:04 AM CDT
(Newser)
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With three big storms hitting the US within about a week, FEMA is attempting to stay a step ahead, planning emergency response strategies and deploying supplies. The agency's new "dynamic regrouping" plan represents a real-time collaboration between military, civilian, and volunteer personnel, the Christian Science Monitor reports. "The depth of resources nationally, it's not a deep bullpen there," says a Red Cross adviser.
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Homes wiped out on tiny island as ferocious storm heads for Bahamas

CNN Sep 7, 08 6:49 AM CDT
(Newser)
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A howling Hurricane Ike bent palm trees and ripped up hundreds of homes as it tore through the Turks and Caicos islands in the Caribbean early today. Up to 50% of houses in Grand Turk lost roofs or were completely destroyed by the 135 mph winds, and the entire British island was without power, reports CNN. People were cowering in closets and under stairwells, "holding on for life," said one witness. "They got hit really, really bad."
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Associated Press Sep 6, 08 12:02 PM CDT
(AP)
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Tropical Storm Hanna accelerated toward the New England states today after the storm's whipping winds and rain did not linger long enough over the Southeast to cause much more than isolated flooding and power outages. Hanna moved quickly inland after cruising ashore overnight with winds of around 50 mph. But as Hanna cleared out, eyes turned to Hurricane Ike—a Category 3 storm with winds of nearly 115 mph that was expected to strengthen as it approached Cuba and southern Florida by Monday.
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States suffer power loss, some flooding

CNN Sep 6, 08 7:35 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Tropical Storm Hanna hit the shores of the Carolinas this morning, bringing big waves and some flooding, wind damage, and blackouts, CNN reports. Some 22,000 homes in the two states lost power while nearly 2,000 residents entered shelters. “Large and dangerous battering waves” as well as tornadoes could be on their way, forecasters warned. But “it's actually going fairly well,” said an emergency spokesman.
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Hurricane may bring 115 mph winds, tornadoes, flash floods
Tallahassee Democrat Sep 5, 08 2:10 PM CDT
(Newser)
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With Tropical Storm Hanna looking to be relatively benign when it makes landfall tomorrow, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has called another state of emergency for his state in anticipation of Hurricane Ike, the Tallahassee Democrat reports. Ike is bearing down on the peninsula’s southeast end, and is forecast to hit Tuesday.
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Scientists argue whether climate change strengthens hurricanes

USA Today Sep 4, 08 1:19 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Global warming is causing intensifying hurricanes around the world, a new study shows. Scientists analyzed 2,000 “tropical cyclones” occurring from 1980 to 2006 and found that the “strongest storms are getting stronger, especially over the Atlantic and Indian Oceans,” USA Today reports. Warmer water “has more energy that can be converted to tropical cyclone wind,” explains one of the researchers.
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