"Hurricane Earl intensifies as it churns east; Airports close, ships shift course as storm closes in" by David McFadden, Associated Press | August 30, 2010
SAN JUAN — Islanders set up emergency shelters and airlines canceled flights as newly born Hurricane Earl churned toward the northern Caribbean yesterday. Cruise lines diverted ships to avoid the storm’s path....
Steady bands of rain began lashing islands including Antigua, where the Grand Pineapple Beach Resort on the north side battened down early for the night and tourists sought shelter inside their rooms.
Winds were heavy but had not caused any major damage, and the surf was higher than normal but not punishing, general manager Courtney Miller said by phone.
Center forecasters said Earl could strengthen into a major hurricane as soon as today, probably while east of Puerto Rico....
People on several islands stuffed shopping carts with bottled water, canned food, milk, candles, and batteries, while some tourists scrambled to board flights home. Others enjoyed the beach while they could.
“I’m just trying get a good suntan in while the weather is still cooperating,’’ said Linda Curren of New York City, sunbathing on San Juan’s Ocean Park beach as a few surfers paddled into pounding waves....
Earl could bring battering waves and a storm surge of up to 3 feet above normal tide levels in some areas, according to forecasters. Heavy rains could cause flash floods and mudslides.
Forecasters said Earl had several bands of thunderstorms wrapped around its center. Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 45 miles from its center. Warm ocean temperatures are helping to fuel the storm.
Forecasters said there is a chance the hurricane could brush the mid-Atlantic region of the United States toward the end of the week, with its closest approach to North Carolina on Thursday. In any case, the East Coast will probably see pounding surf.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Danielle, which brought dangerous rip currents to the East Coast, was gradually weakening as it headed over the open Atlantic northeast of Bermuda.
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SAN JUAN — Hurricane Earl battered tiny islands across the northeastern Caribbean with heavy rain and roof-ripping winds yesterday, rapidly intensifying into a major Category 4 storm on a path projected to menace the United States.
Already dangerous with sustained winds of 135 miles per hour, Earl is expected to gain more strength before potentially brushing the East Coast this week and bringing deadly rip currents.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami warned coastal residents from North Carolina to Maine to watch the storm closely....
The Hurricane Center said it is too early to say what effect Earl would have on the United States, but warned it could at least kick up rip currents. A surfer died in Florida and a Maryland swimmer has been missing since Saturday in waves spawned by Hurricane Danielle, which weakened to a tropical storm yesterday far out in the Atlantic....
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When it gets here I'll worry.
