Hurricane Irene reaches category three on way to US

Hurricane Irene has grown to category three force as it barrels towards the east coast of the United States.

Irene is now packing winds of 110 mph (185km/h) near the Bahamas, and the storm could reach the US mainland by the end of the week.
Voluntary evacuations have begun on a barrier island off North Carolina. People are already stocking up on supplies.
The storm has brought flooding and power cuts across the Caribbean.
Emergency preparations Federal officials have warned the large storm could do the same along the US east coast as far north as Maine, even if it stays offshore.
Coastal areas could suffer beach erosion because of tidal-surge waves and tropical-storm winds, warned the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric administration.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency advised people in affected areas to use social media to let family know they were safe, in order to avoid overloading mobile phone networks.
Officials as far north as Rhode Island and Massachusetts in the US have been preparing for the hurricane.
In the state of North Carolina, residents have been buying up fuel and supplies, and plywood to board up windows.
A number of tourists have caught flights off the Bahamas ahead of the storm's arrival there.
Smaller hotels were shut on the island and larger resorts were booked up with people seeking a place to ride out the storm.
The storm was expected to make many roads impassable in downtown Nassau, the Bahamian capital.
On Tuesday, Irene pelted the UK overseas territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands with high winds and heavy rain.
The US state department warned US citizens against travelling to the region.
Woman dies Hundreds of people in the Dominican Republic took refuge in schools and churches after they were displaced by storm flooding.

 

In Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, residents prepared for evacuation

In Puerto Rico, the storm knocked out power to more than half the island and affected the water supplies of more than 100,000 people.
A 62-year-old woman died while attempting to drive over a swollen river near the capital, San Juan, the Associated Press reported.
US President Barack Obama declared an emergency - making the island eligible for federal help.
Craig Fugate, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, advised residents of the east coast from the Mid-Atlantic region up to New England to prepare for the hurricane's arrival.
"It's going to be close and whether we get a brush or whether we have a landfall, it's too early to say," he told ABC television.
"Go ahead and make sure you're ready and then if evacuations are required, heed those evacuation orders."

 

 

 

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