Hurricane causes Florida panic
2005-07-08 07:12
Port Charlotte - People in the Florida Keys were ordered to flee and residents along hundreds of kilometres of coastline on the Gulf of Mexico began boarding up as a rapidly strengthening Hurricane Dennis took aim at the storm-weary region.
Forecasters warned residents from Florida to Louisiana to be ready this weekend for Dennis, with top winds already at 217km/h. The hurricane turned into a Category 4 storm on Thursday evening as it gained strength while barrelling through the Caribbean toward the Gulf of Mexico.
The storm was moving northwest on a path that could have the Florida Keys and southwestern Florida feeling its effects on Friday.
Many in the hurricane's projected path already got a wake-up call this week from a surprising Tropical Storm Cindy that caused three deaths, knocked out power to thousands, and spawned twisters that toppled trees and caused up to $40m damage to a famed NASCAR auto racing track.
"We're trying to get ready for whatever happens. We've been through so much already," Jose Davila said as he painted a house in Port Charlotte, where blue tarps still dot the rooftops of homes waiting to be repaired from Hurricane Charley, the first of a record four hurricanes to hit Florida last year.
"They're freaked out," Joe Hendrickson said of residents he encountered snapping up plywood and storm shutters at a Home Depot in nearby Punta Gorda. "They're taking it serious. They've seen what a hurricane can do."
Tourists throughout the Florida Keys were ordered to evacuate, as were all mobile home residents - and all southernmost residents of the island chain. A hurricane warning was issued for the lower Keys and Governor Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency.
Lines of cars were seen streaming out of the island chain Thursday. Airlines reported that nearly all flights out of Key West were full, and Greyhound added buses to help get residents out of the area.
At 23:00, Dennis' centre was about 170km south of Camaguey.
Dennis strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane when its sustained winds hit 211km/h.
- AP