SAN JUAN: Hurricane Imelda was nearly on top of Bermuda late Wednesday as a Category 2 storm that forecasters warned was expected to bring potentially destructive weather to the British territory. &ldquo;Imelda&#39;s core is now moving over Bermuda, where hurricane-force winds, damaging waves, and flash flooding are expected into the morning,&rdquo; the National Weather Service in Miami said in an 11 p.m. update. Imelda was about 20 miles (30 kilometres) southwest of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) while moving east-northeast at 29 mph (46 kph), the center said. A hurricane warning remained in effect for Bermuda, a wealthy overseas territory with strong structures that have withstood powerful storms in previous years. Imelda was expected to drop between 2 and 4 inches (5 and 10 centimetres) of rain across Bermuda and produce a dangerous storm surge that the hurricane center said could unleash coastal flooding. Hundreds of customers were without power ahead of the storm. Bermuda closed its public schools, government offices, and international airport on Wednesday as it deployed 100 soldiers to secure infrastructure, clear roads, and help at emergency shelters ahead of the storm. &ldquo;This is a dangerous storm system that could bring destructive winds, heavy rainfall, and significant coastal impacts,&rdquo; said Michael Weeks, Bermuda&rsquo;s national security minister. Deadly stormEarlier in the week, Imelda battered the northern Caribbean, unleashing widespread flooding in eastern Cuba, where two people died. In the province of Guant&aacute;namo, more than 18,000 people were evacuated, while in Santiago de Cuba, flooding and landslides cut off access to 17 communities where more than 24,000 people live, according to state reports. On Wednesday, more than 3,500 people remained evacuated in Guantanamo while crews began to repair damaged roads and bridges in the area. Authorities in Haiti said one person is missing and two were injured following heavy flooding in the country&#39;s southwest and northwest regions. Hurricane Humberto, which had been racing ahead of Imelda, dissipated on Wednesday after passing west of Bermuda on Tuesday. Its remnants were named Storm Amy by UK forecasters, who warned it would affect much of Ireland and the UK starting Friday. Beaches hit by dangerous swellsImelda and Humberto&#39;s remnants were generating dangerous surf and deadly rip currents affecting beaches along the north Caribbean, the Bahamas, Bermuda, and much of the US East Coast. At least five unoccupied houses along North Carolina&rsquo;s Outer Banks collapsed into the ocean on Tuesday, according to the US National Park Service, marking the latest private beachfront structures to fall into the surf there in recent years. This Atlantic hurricane season marks the first time in 10 years that a hurricane hasn&#39;t made landfall in the US through the end of September, according to AccuWeather, a private US weather forecasting company. &ldquo;This hurricane season so far is quite unique, with several close calls for the United States,&rdquo; said Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather&rsquo;s lead hurricane expert. Only Tropical Storm Chantal made landfall in the US earlier this year. He noted Humberto pulled Imelda away from the US East Coast in what is known as the Fujiwhara Effect, a rare phenomenon in the Atlantic in which two storms are so close together that they start rotating counterclockwise around each other. Humberto and Imelda were a mere 467 miles (751 kilometers) apart earlier this week, the closest distance recorded between two Atlantic hurricanes since 1853, according to Michael Lowry, a hurricane specialist and storm surge expert. While the Atlantic hurricane season is winding down, DaSilva urged people to remain alert. &ldquo;We expect atmospheric conditions that could support tropical storms and hurricanes well into late October and November this year,&rdquo; he said.Hurricane&nbsp;Imelda reached hurricane strength on Tuesday, becoming the Atlantic season&rsquo;s fourth hurricane this year. Th<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; display: inline !important; float: none;" id="isPasted">e US&nbsp;National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had predicted an above-normal season with 13 to 18 named storms. Of those, five to nine were forecast to become hurricanes, including two to five major hurricanes, which pack winds of 111 mph (178 kph) or greater. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.

Natural Disaster

Hurricane Imelda struck Bermuda with 100 mph (160 kph) winds, flooding, and power outages, after deadly impacts in Cuba and Haiti. The storm, alongside Humberto, also caused dangerous surf along the US East Coast.

Articles tagged with "US East Coast"

Hurricane Imelda descends on Bermuda with damaging wind and waves