HURRICANE JEANNE PICTURES LATEST NEWS

Jeanne is gone now time for a volcano! Mount St Helens eruption imminent

2004-09-30T15:31:00.002-07:00

A row of television trucks line a parking area near Johnston Ridge as Mount St. Helens towers behind Thursday morning, Sept. 30, 2004, at Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Wash. A series of small earthquakes at the volcano over the past week has prompted scientists to predict an eruption could be imminent. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

By GENE JOHNSONSEATTLE (AP) - The flurry of earthquakes at Mount St. Helens intensified further Thursday, and one scientist put the chance of a small eruption happening in the next few days at 70 per cent.Jeff Wynn, chief scientist at the U.S. Geologic Survey's Cascade Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Wash., said tiny quakes were happening three or four times a minute. Larger quakes, with magnitudes of 3.0 to 3.3, were happening every three or four minutes, he said.New measurements show the 297-metre lava dome in the volcano's crater has moved six centimetres to the north since Monday, Wynn said."Imagine taking a 1,000-foot-high (300-metre) pile of rocks and moving it 2 1/2 inches (six centimetres). For a geologist, that's a lot of energy," Wynn said.Wynn estimated there was a 70 per cent chance the activity will result in an eruption.Scientists did not expect anything like the mountain's devastating eruption in 1980, which killed 57 people and coated towns 400 kilometres away with ash. On Wednesday, they warned that a small or moderate blast from the southwest Washington mountain could spew ash and rock as far as five kilometres from the 2,550-metre peak.Scientists planned to fly over the volcano again Thursday to test for gases that could indicate the presence of magma moving beneath the volcano.Few people live near the mountain, which is in a national forest about 160 kilometres south of Seattle. The closest structure is the Johnston Ridge Observatory, less than 10 kilometres from the crater.The heightened alert has drawn a throng of sightseers to observation areas. Dawn Smith, co-owner of Eco Park Resort west of the mountain, told the News Tribune of Tacoma, "It's just been crazy the past couple of days."A sign in front of her business reads: Here we go again.The Geological Survey raised the mountain's eruption advisory from Level 2 to Level 3 out of a possible 4 on Wednesday, prompting officials to begin notifying various state and federal agencies of a possible eruption.The USGS also has asked the National Weather Service to be ready to track an ash plume with its radar.In addition, scientists called off a plan to have two researchers study water rushing from the crater's north face for signs of magma.However, a plane was still able to fly over the crater Wednesday to collect gas samples. Negligible amounts of volcanic gas were found."An aircraft can move . . . out of the way fast," Wynn said. "We don't want anyone in there on foot."The USGS has been monitoring St. Helens closely since Sept. 23, when swarms of tiny earthquakes were first recorded. On Sunday, scientists issued a notice of volcanic unrest, closing the crater and upper flanks of the volcano to hikers and climbers.Scientists said they believe the seismic activity is being caused by pressure from a reservoir of molten rock a little more than 1.5 kilometres below the crater. That magma apparently rose from a depth of about 10 kilometres in 1998, but never reached the surface, Wynn said.The mountain's eruption on May 18, 1980, blasted away its top 400 metres, spawned mudflows that choked the Columbia River shipping channel, levelled hundreds of square kilometres of forest besides paralyzed towns and cities more than 400 kilometres to the east with volcanic ash.

Jeanne is gone now time for a volcano! Mount St Helens eruption imminent

2004-09-30T15:31:00.001-07:00

Jeanne drenches GA and SC 1PM Monday PDT

2004-09-27T13:34:00.000-07:00

By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press Writer
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Hurricane Jeanne tore a fresh path of destruction as it marched up storm-ravaged Florida and moved into Georgia and South Carolina Monday, losing strength along the way. The fourth hurricane in six weeks shut down much of Florida and prompted recovery plans on a scale never before seen in the nation.

At 2 p.m. EDT, the center was in southwestern Georgia south of Macon. It was moving north at 14 mph and was expected to move over the Carolinas. Most counties in South Carolina except the northeast corner were under a flood watch, and the U.S. Weather Service placed much of southern Georgia under a tornado watch. North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley declared a state of emergency and mobilized 300 National Guard soldiers.
Jeanne was at barely tropical storm strength when its center moved over Georgia late Monday morning, dumping up to 6 inches of rain. It later weakened into a tropical depression with steady winds near 35 mph.
The storm then doused South Carolina and spawned tornadoes that damaged seven mobile homes and a building housing a Head Start center, said Cody Odom, of the Clarendon County Disaster Preparedness Agency. Four people were injured.
About 50 homes in Valdosta, Ga., in the south-central part of the state, were evacuated early Monday because of flooding. More than 76,000 Georgia homes and businesses were without power, and about 760 people stayed in Red Cross shelters.
In Florida, at least six people died in the storm as it plowed across the state's midsection in a virtual rerun for many residents still trying to regroup from hurricanes that have crisscrossed the Southeast since mid-August.
"This is the price we pay for living in paradise," said Phyllis Cole, laughing at her predicament as she waited along with about a dozen others Monday on a promise that a Home Depot store in Stuart would reopen. Everyone wanted the same thing: a generator. None was in stock, but the manager thought some were on the way.
Jeanne came ashore around midnight Saturday with 120 mph wind, striking the same area hit three weeks ago by Hurricane Frances and rocketing debris scattered by earlier storms. Roofs were torn off, stop lights dangled precariously and bridges were flooded from the mainland to barrier islands. About 2.6 million homes and businesses lost power, but some 800,000 had it restored by midday.
"We have some people in Florida who have been hit two or three times now by these hurricanes. They have to be miserable right now," Federal Emergency Management Agencydirector Mike Brown told "The Early Show" on CBS.
Frustration was obvious Monday in Florida. Nicole Jillard and Ed Holzer waited 20 minutes in their car with their 3- and 1-year-old children for two bags of ice, a case of bottled water and 12 Meals Ready to Eat at a Kmart parking lot in Stuart.
The drive-up service provided by the National Guard attracted a line of cars stretching at least a half-mile down U.S. 1, the coastal city's main thoroughfare.
"This is not good," Holzer said. "We don't have enough money to keep running to places like Fort Myers for food and water."
Florida was the first state to withstand a four-hurricane pounding in one season since Texas in 1886 — a milestone that came with two months remaining in the hurricane season.
"We fix it and nature destroys it and we fix it again," said Rockledge bar owner Franco Zavaroni, who opened his tavern to seven friends who spread mattresses on the floor among the pool tables to ride out the storm.
Irene Underwood, 88, waited at a Red Cross shelter in Melbourne for a ride to her sixth shelter since the hurricanes started. Her latest temporary home was being closed as emergency officials consolidated operations.
"I can't go home because I don't have any power. It's terrible," Underwood said.
Martin County Commissioner Doug Smith said Monday that Jeanne left few buildings in his county unscarred because Frances had weakened them and subsequent rain from Ivan had saturated the ground.

President Bush declared a major disaster area in 26 of Florida's 67 counties while FEMA officials said the hurricanes represented the largest relief effort in the agency's history, eclipsing the response to the 1994 earthquake in the Northridge section of Los Angeles.
More than 3,000 National Guard troops were deployed to aid relief efforts. Several counties, including Palm Beach and St. Lucie — two of the hardest hit by Jeanne's winds and rain — opened distribution sites Monday for water and ice.
Jeanne follows Charley, which hammered Florida's southwest coast Aug. 13; Frances, which struck the same area as Jeanne Sept. 5; and Ivan, which blasted the western Panhandle Sept. 16. The three storms caused billions of dollars in damage and killed at least 73 people in Florida alone.
"I never want to go through this again," said 8-year-old Katie Waskiewicz, who checked out the fallen trees and broken roof tiles in her Palm Beach Gardens neighborhood after riding out Jeanne with her family. "I was running around the house screaming."
Jeanne was a Category 3 hurricane when it made landfall at Hutchinson Island, 35 miles north of West Palm Beach. Officials at the National Hurricane Center said the similar paths of Jeanne and Frances were possibly unprecedented.
At least 21 Florida county school districts canceled classes on Monday, including St. Lucie County, where schools had not reopened since Frances.
Police in St. Lucie rescued five families when the hurricane's eye passed over, including a couple in their 90s in wheelchairs whose mobile home collapsed around them, emergency operations spokeswoman Linette Trabulsy said. A Coast Guard helicopter crew found two fishermen who had radioed a mayday off Anclote Key, about 25 miles northwest of Tampa.
The toll from the latest storm extended south to Miami, where one person was electrocuted after touching a downed power line. Two people died when their sport utility vehicle plunged into a canal; a 15-year-old boy was killed by a falling tree; and a man was found dead in a ditch in what police called an apparent drowning.
A 60-year-old man was found dead after a hurricane party at a home. Police said the death may be alcohol-related or he may have drowned in the flooded house.
The Palm Beach County sheriff's office made 132 arrests for curfew violations. Four people in a car stopped for violating the curfew dragged a sergeant 150 feet Sunday night near Belle Glade. Three other deputies fired on the car, which blew a tire.
With Jeanne dumping heavy rain, there was fear of flooding in the days to come in already saturated east and central Florida. The storm dumped about 10 inches of rain in Palm Beach County and 5 inches in Orlando, St. Petersburg and Melbourne.
Earlier, Jeanne caused flooding in Haiti that killed more than 1,500 people.
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Associated Press writers Jill Barton in West Palm Beach, Deborah Hastings in Stuart and Ron Word in Titusville contributed to this report.
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Pictures of the Damage from Hurricane Jeanne Monday September 27 2004

2004-09-27T13:17:00.000-07:00

An aerial view of a mobile home park that is littered with debris and severely damaged September 27, 2004 after Hurricane Jeanne hit Floridana Beach, Florida Sunday. Hurricane Jeanne, a category three storm is the fourth named storm to hit Florida and the second such storm to attack the treasure coast in a little over a month. REUTERS/Marc Serota

Twenty-year-old Chris Paulette walks along a five foot in diameter oak tree that split his house in half as Tropical Storm Jeanne passed through Tallahassee, Florida in the early morning hours of September 27, 2004. Paulette was buried in his bed under wood and insulation when the tree fell and was rescued by his roommates through the window at right. (Mark Wallheiser/Reuters)

An aerial view of a mobile home park damaged on September 27, 2004 after Hurricane Jeanne hit Florida Beach, Florida. Hurricane Jeanne, a category three storm is the fourth named storm to hit Florida and the second such storm to attack the treasure coast in a little over a month. (Marc Serota/Reuters)

3 Million told to flee Florida

2004-09-25T13:02:00.000-07:00

Dianne Ragno fills gas containers for her newly purchased generater Saturday, Sept. 24, 2004 as Hurricane Jeanne approaches Palm City,Fla. She was without power for seven days after the last hurricane. (AP photo/J.Pat Carter)

By JILL BARTON, Associated Press Writer
FORT PIERCE, Fla. - Hurricane Jeanne got stronger, bigger and faster Saturday, forcing anxious Floridians to hurriedly shutter their homes and buy last-minute supplies as the storm bore down on the state's Atlantic coast with winds near 115 mph. Three million people were told to evacuate.

If it hits Florida late Saturday or Sunday as predicted, it would be the fourth hurricane to slam the state this season, a scenario unmatched in more than a century. Jeanne strengthened into a Category 3 storm Saturday, and Jack Beven, a hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center (news - web sites) in Miami, warned that a Category 4 storm with winds of at least 131 mph "is not out of the question."

Already blamed for more than 1,500 deaths in Haiti, Jeanne was poised to slam some of the same areas hit by the earlier storms, potentially transforming still-uncleared piles of debris into deadly missiles. The storm's outer edges were already dropping rain and kicking up winds along Florida's east coast Saturday afternoon.

From Melbourne south to West Palm Beach, law enforcement officers announced over the radio that anyone outside their homes after a 6 p.m. curfew would end up in jail.

Across Palm Beach County, residents frantically gathered last-minute supplies Saturday after awaking to a forecast that had Jeanne making a direct hit in less than 18 hours.

"I can imagine a lot of people here this morning started freaking out," said Lynn Tarrington of Lake Worth, who was leaving her home near the water. "Yesterday I was hoping we wouldn't lose power again and now I'm hoping I have a house left when I come back."

Airlines began canceling flights at airports in Miami and Fort Lauderdale, which were planning to close, stranding some passengers. Authorities urged storm-weary residents to speed up plans to secure their property and evacuate if necessary.

Jean McArthur, of West Palm Beach, was buying supplies at a Wal-Mart. She had bags full of water, batteries, flashlights and snacks for her three kids.

"We've all been thinking, `This really can't come at us again.' Now that it's just a few hours away, everyone is being forced to take it seriously. I've stopped laughing about it at this point," said McArthur, 39.

No state has been struck by four hurricanes in one season since Texas in 1886. Jeanne could turn into the latest in a devastating chain of hurricanes that have rattled southwest and central Florida (Charley), the state's midsection (Frances) and Florida's Panhandle (Ivan). Combined, the storms have caused billions of dollars of damage and at least 70 deaths in Florida.

Gov. Jeb Bush warned that Jeanne could be stronger than Frances, which caused more $4.1 billion in insured damages in Florida and killed at least 24. He referenced the destruction of Ivan, which devastated barrier islands in the Panhandle and killed at least 23.

"I can't imagine someone not taking this seriously after the last six weeks," Bush said Saturday.

About 3 million people were under mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders, state emergency operations spokesman Mike Stone said.

Charley hit Aug. 13 as a Category 4 on the Safford-Simpson scale with winds of 145 mph. Frances hit on Labor Day weekend as a Category 2 with winds of 105 mph, and Ivan hit last week as a strong Category 3 with winds of 130 mph.

Crews with heavy machinery worked Friday to clear the mess of flattened homes, torn roofs and snapped trees left by Frances. But many acknowledged it was a losing battle.

"They're trying their best but there's a tremendous amount of debris out there. Realistically it doesn't really seem like it would be possible to get it all gathered before this storm hits," said Theresa Woodson, a spokeswoman for Indian River County.

After causing deadly flooding in Haiti, Jeanne looked early in the week like it had turned north and was headed safely out to sea, but it made a jagged loop that brought it toward the Bahamas and Florida.

At 2 p.m. EDT, Jeanne was centered about 145 miles east-southeast of Vero Beach and was moving west at 14 mph. Sustained winds were 115 mph, up from 105 earlier Saturday. A hurricane becomes a Category 3 storm when it reaches sustained winds of 111 mph.

After its expected northward turn over the Florida peninsula, Jeanne was expected to stay inland over Georgia and the Carolinas through Tuesday.

Hurricane warnings were posted from south of Miami to St. Augustine in northeast Florida, and a hurricane watch was up from St. Augustine northward to Altamaha Sound, Ga. A hurricane watch also was issued for Florida's Gulf Coast from Englewood in southwest Florida to the Suwanee River north of the Tampa Bay area.

Rainfall totals of 5 to 10 inches were expected in the storm's path, and flooding could be a major concern because previous hurricanes have already saturated the ground and filled canals, rivers and lakes.

The timing of the storm raised concern for Jews observing Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, which ends at sundown Saturday. During that period, observant Jews usually do not work, carry cash or travel by car, all of which could hamper hurricane preparations.

"I don't know if I will evacuate or not," physician Armand Braun said as he stocked up supplies at a grocery store in Satellite Beach. "Jewish law says you put Jewish requirements aside if there is any danger."

Taking nothing for granted, residents up and down Florida's Atlantic coast went about what has become an all-too-familiar ritual: boarding up and stocking up, with some people taking advantage of supplies still on hand from Frances and Charley. Many South Florida gas stations ran dry.

"We probably have the highest per-capita battery ownership in the world," said Bush.

Under gathering black clouds on Saturday, Judy Smith and her family stopped at a gas station in the beach hamlet of Cocoa after leaving their homes on the south end of Merritt Island. Hurricane Frances spared their homes but blew down surrounding trees.

"What can you do?" asked Judy Smith. "You've got your house insurance, and everything in it can be replaced.

"Everything I care about is right here," she said, motioning to her family

Dangerous Category 3 Hurricane Jeanne slamming Bahamas heading for Florida

2004-09-25T11:57:00.000-07:00

This is the NOAA satellite enhanced infrared image gathered at 4:45 a.m. EDT Saturday Sept. 25, 2004 showing hurricane Jeanne located near latitude 26.5 north... longitude 76.2 or about 55 miles (90km) east of Great Abaco Island in the northwestern Bahamas. Jeanne is moving toward the west at near 14 mph. Reports from an Air Force Reserve hurricane hunter aircraft indicate that maximum sustained winds are near 105 mph (165 KM/hr) with higher gusts. According to NOAA forecasters Jeanne is expected to intensify into a category three hurricane. (AP Photo/NOAA)

M. Ressler, Senior Meteorologist, The Weather Channel
As the surf continues to build and increasingly heavy rain bands swirl ashore into the central and southern Florida, the first hurricane force winds from this category-3 hurricane will likely reach the coast between Melbourne and points north of Miami by evening. Conditions will continue to dangerously deteriorate across much of the peninsula tonight as Jeanne moves onshore and then into central Florida. Hurricane force winds will damage buildings and bring down a new round of trees and power lines. A flood watch is effect for the entire peninsula for torrential rains than could dump between 5 and 12 inches in some locations. Even the west side of Florida will likely experience tropical storm conditions by Sunday. A combination of surge, above average tides and battering waves on Florida's east coast will cause at great deal of coastal damage. On Sunday, Jeanne will likely rake from central Florida into northern Florida on a track toward southern Georgia. As winds turn onshore on Florida's west coast Sunday, the combination of higher than average tides and the Gulf water being forced to the coast could cause coastal flooding north of Tampa. On Sunday as Jeanne gradually weakens, building damage will become much less of a concern on its northward track but major tree and power line damage will continue over the central and northern peninsula and possibly into the eastern portions of the panhandle. Monday into Tuesday, a steadily weakening Jeanne will likely head northward through eastern Georgia and the eastern Carolinas with more flooding rain, the risk for tornadoes northeast and east of track and tropical storm strength winds that could still bring down trees and power lines.

Hurricane Jeanne now a threat to Florida

2004-09-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

Thu Sep 23,12:03 PM ET
Hurricane Jeanne is seen on a computer monitor, Thursday, Sept. 23, 2004 at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The hurricane is expected to make landfall this weekend. (AP Photo/J.Pat Carter)

MIAMI After causing more than a thousand deaths in Haiti, forecasters say Hurricane Jeanne (jeen) is now a threat to Florida.Experts at the National Hurricane Center say that steering currents are now pushing Jeanne westward, after the system meandered around for several days. They say the storm poses a threat to much of Florida's east coast this weekend.
Jeanne is now about 450 miles east of Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas, moving west at five miles-per-hour. It's packing 105 mile-per-hour winds.

Hurricane Jeanne threatens , Hurricane Karl weakens and Hurricane Lisa moves slowly

2004-09-22T13:22:00.000-07:00

A NOAA satellite image shows Hurricanes Jeanne and Karl and Tropical Storm Lisa (L-R) taken at 1215EDT (1615GMT) September 21, 2004, as the three storms churn in the Atlantic Ocean and currently pose no threat to land. REUTERS/NOAA

Jeanne predicted to head back toward U.S.
Associated Press
MIAMI - Deadly Hurricane Jeanne could head back toward the United States and threaten the storm-battered Southeast coast, including Florida, as early as this weekend, forecasters said Wednesday.
It was too soon to tell where or if Jeanne would hit, but forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami warned residents from Florida to Maryland to watch the storm with 90 mph top sustained winds.
Some computer models had Jeanne curving out to sea and missing land, but others had it hitting the United States on Saturday or Sunday, forecasters said.
Jeanne was blamed for more than 700 deaths in Haiti, where it hit over the weekend as a tropical storm and caused flooding. It had been moving out to sea, but appeared to be looping back toward land, forecasters said.
At 11 a.m. EDT, Jeanne was centered about 530 miles east of Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas. It was moving south near 5 mph, but was expected to head west by early Thursday.
Dangerous surf and rip currents along with large swells are possible along the southeastern U.S. coast over the next few days, forecasters said. If Jeanne hit Florida, it would follow Hurricanes Charley, Frances and Ivan, which caused billions of dollars of damage and more than 60 deaths across the state.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Karl weakened slightly and stayed on an open-ocean course that only threatened ships, while Tropical Storm Lisa moved slowly far out in the Atlantic.
Karl, the seventh hurricane this season, had top sustained winds near 105 mph, down from about 120 mph a day earlier. At 11 a.m., Karl was centered about 1,490 miles west-southwest of Fayal Island in the Western Azores and was moving north near 14 mph.
At 11 a.m., Lisa had top sustained winds near 50 mph, down from about 70 mph a day earlier. The 12th named storm of the season was centered about 1,165 miles west of the Cape Verde Islands and was moving west-northwest near 6 mph.
The hurricane season ends Nov. 30.

Floods from Jeanne kill more than 600 in Haiti

2004-09-21T01:16:00.000-07:00

Haitian families stay outside of their houses after flooding and mudslides in Gonaives, Haiti, Monday, Sept. 20, 2004. Receding floodwaters raged through neighborhoods of Haiti's third largest city, dragging people from their homes and forcing survivors to spend the night in trees, atop cars and on rooftops following Tropical Storm Jeanne. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

By AMY BRACKEN, Associated Press Writer
GONAIVES, Haiti - Bloated corpses and weeping relatives filled morgues in Haiti after Tropical Storm Jeanne left at least 622 people dead, another tragedy on this Caribbean island in a year marked by revolts, military interventions and deadly floods. The death toll was expected to rise.

Hardest hit was the northern city of Gonaives, where search crews continued to recover bodies carried away by the raging weekend floods or buried by mud or the ruins of their homes.

Toussaint Kongo-Doudou, a spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti, said at least 500 people had died in Gonaives.

"I lost my kids and there's nothing I can do," said Jean Estimable, whose 2-year-old daughter was killed and another of his five children was missing and presumed dead.

"All I have is complete despair and the clothes I'm wearing," he said, pointing to a floral dress and ripped pants borrowed from a neighbor.

Many of the bodies stacked in the city's flood-damaged General Hospital were children.

Residents waded through ankle-deep mud outside the mayor's office, where doctors were treating the wounded and aid workers were helping a woman give birth.

Elsewhere, 56 people were killed in northern Port-de-Paix and 17 died in the nearby town of Terre Neuve, officials said.

Dieufort Deslorges, a spokesman for the government civil protection agency, reported another 49 bodies recovered in other villages and towns, most in the northwest.

"We expect to find dozens more bodies, especially in Gonaives, as ... floodwaters recede," Deslorges said.

The storm came four months after devastating floods along the southern border of Haiti and neighboring Dominican Republic. Some 1,700 bodies were recovered and 1,600 more were missing and presumed dead.

Floods are particularly devastating in Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, because it is almost completely deforested, leaving few roots to hold back rushing waters or mudslides. Most of the trees have been chopped down to make charcoal for cooking.

Gonaives, a city of about a quarter million people, also suffered fighting during the February rebellion that led to the ouster of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and left an estimated 300 dead.

All this in a year supposed to be dedicated to celebrating the 200th anniversary of the country's independence from France. Haiti, the only country to launch a successful rebellion against slavery, was the world's first black republic.

Two days after lashing Haiti, Jeanne regained hurricane strength over the Atlantic on Monday but posed no immediate threat to land. The storm entered the Caribbean last week, killing seven people in Puerto Rico before heading to the Dominican Republic where it killed at least 18.

Katya Silme, 18, said she, her mother and six siblings spent the night in a tree because their house was flooded.

"The river destroyed my house completely, and now we have nothing. We have not eaten anything since the floods," she said.

Waterlines up to 10 feet high showed the passage of the storm waters, which turned some roads into fast-flowing rivers. Floodwaters destroyed homes and crops in the Artibonite region that is Haiti's breadbasket.

Deslorges described the situation in Gonaives as "catastrophic." He said survivors "need everything from potable water to food, clothing, medication and disinfectants."

Three trucks carrying Red Cross relief supplies rolled in Monday, but two were mobbed by people who grabbed blankets and towels. U.N. troops stood by watching. Only one truck arrived intact at the mayor's office intact with tents.

People tripped over each other to grab tiny bags of water thrown from a Red Cross truck in front of City Hall, where officials said about 500 injured were treated Monday.

"Everyone is desperate," said Pelissier Heber of the Artibonite Chamber of Commerce (news - web sites).

Argentine troops who are among more than 3,000 U.N. peacekeepers in Haiti treated at least 150 people injured by the floods in Gonaives, mostly for cuts on feet and legs.

One man stood outside the flooded base used by Argentine troops, asking soldiers to remove 11 bodies that were floating in his house, including four brothers and a sister.

"I would like to see if the soldiers could do something about these bodies," said Jean-Saint Manus, a 30-year-old student. "The door was closed. Everybody was trapped inside."

He said he had been outside and could only get in once the floods subsided.

Equipment including the X-ray machine was covered with mud at Gonaives' General Hospital, said Dr. Pierre-Marie Dieudonne, a doctor with the Catholic agency Caritas.

Interim Prime Minister Gerard Latortue toured flooded areas Sunday and declared Gonaives a disaster area, calling for aid. The U.S. Embassy announced $60,000 in immediate relief.

In the Dominican Republic, at least 11 people drowned Monday in rivers swollen by Jeanne's heavy rains.

At 11 p.m. EDT, Jeanne was about 405 miles east of Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas, with winds near 85 mph, moving northeast at about 7 mph.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Karl and Tropical Storm Lisa remained far out in the Atlantic. Karl's sustained winds were 140 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane. Lisa had winds of 60 mph.

Tropical Storm Jeanne pictures from Haiti

2004-09-19T19:00:00.000-07:00

A woman injured in the flooding from Tropical Storm Jeanne receives medical treatment by a UN in front of the UN base in Gonaives, Haiti, Sunday, Sept. 19, 2004. The bodies of two victims are seen in the background. Jeanne killed at least 50 people in Haiti after battering the neighboring Dominican Republic with its lashing winds and deadly storm surge before it pushed off into the open sea on Sunday, officials said. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

The bodies of two people killed in the flooding from Tropical Storm Jeanne lie in front of the UN base in Gonaives, Haiti, Sunday, Sept. 19, 2004. Jeanne killed at least 50 people in Haiti after battering the neighboring Dominican Republic with its lashing winds and deadly storm surge before it pushed off into the open sea on Sunday, officials said. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Estimated 90 Dead in Haiti from Tropical Storm Jeanne

2004-09-19T18:57:00.000-07:00

By Joseph Guyler Delva
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Floods and mudslides from Tropical Storm Jeanne killed about 90 people in Haiti and more were missing in the Caribbean nation on Sunday as the storm swirled in the Atlantic east of the Bahamas, a civil protection official said.

Jeanne previously killed 11 people and destroyed hundreds of houses in the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti.

Two days of steady rain sent torrents down the mountains in the Artibonite and Northwest provinces of Haiti, causing rivers to burst their banks and triggering mudslides, civil defense officials said.

U.N. resident coordinator Adama Guindo said members of the Brazilian-led international force trying to restore stability in Haiti after a revolt led to the departure in February of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, told him about 50 people were killed around Gonaives.

The city of 200,000 people was covered with mud and a delegation of officials could not leave the high ground to enter. Many people had climbed onto roofs to escape the floodwaters and were stranded there, the officials said.

The island of La Tortue off Haiti's north coast was barely visible under the water, according to officials who flew over it in a helicopter.

Homes were washed away, cars were caught in the rising water and telephone service was cut off, making it difficult to communicate with emergency officials in the region.

"It's incredible what happened. We are going to help with the assistance. There are a lot of people suffering, they'll need our help." said Brazilian Gen. Augusto Heleno Ribeiro Pereira, commander of the international force.

Officials with the Office of Civil Protection said about 30 people were also killed in flooding in the Northwest province of Haiti and others are believed missing. About 10 deaths were reported in other areas, and at least 380 were injured, officials said.

Interim Prime Minister Gerard Latortue said he would declare a state of emergency, and the World Health Organization was sending a team to distribute medical kits.

Haiti is vulnerable to flooding because it has been severely deforested.

Jeanne, which killed two people in Puerto Rico last week, swept north of Hispaniola during the weekend. On Sunday, it was spinning northward in the Atlantic Ocean about 145 miles (230 km) east-northeast of the central Bahamian island of San Salvador and had top sustained winds of 50 mph (80 kph).

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami expected it to turn to the northeast, away from the Bahamas by late Monday. That path also would spare Florida, which has been devastated by three hurricanes in the last five weeks.

Hurricane Karl strengthened into a fierce Category 4 storm on the five-step scale of hurricane intensity with 135 mph (215 kph) winds. But it was far out in the Atlantic 1,155 miles (1,850 km) east of the Caribbean islands of the Lesser Antilles, and was expected to stay far away from land.

Tropical Storm Jeanne batters Dominican Republic

2004-09-19T04:26:00.000-07:00

Amarilis Santos carries wood from her destroyed house in Ramon Santana, 90 kilometers east of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on Saturday, Sep. 18, 2004. Hurricane Jeanne hit various parts of the Caribbean nation, downing hundreds of trees and telephone polls, flooding entire communities and leaving at least seven dead. (AP Photo/Miguel Gomez)

Angel Jefe cleans mud from her home in Ramon Santana, 90 kilometers east of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Saturday, Sept. 18, 2004.A tropical storm once again, Jeanne headed for the Bahamas on Saturday after rampaging through the Dominican Republic. Forecasters said it was too soon to predict if the storm would hit the United States. (AP Photo/Miguel Gomez)

Boys ride their bikes through flood waters in Puerto Rico. US President George W. Bush designated Puerto Rico a disaster zone, freeing up federal emergency funds to help the US island commonwealth in its recovery efforts after Hurricane Jeanne.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Jose Jiminez)

Erick Silvestre, 14, left and his brother Jemy Silvestre rest near their destroyed home in Ramon Santana, 90 kilometers east of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Saturday, Sept. 18, 2004. A tropical storm once again, Jeanne headed for the Bahamas on Saturday after rampaging through the Dominican Republic. Forecasters said it was too soon to predict if the storm would hit the United States. (AP Photo/Miguel Gomez)

TROPICAL STORM JEANNE can't decide what it is going to do next

2004-09-19T04:22:00.000-07:00

Tropical storm Jeanne or Hurricane Jeanne???
Head for Florida or head out to sea???

MIAMI - (KRT) - Tropical Storm Jeanne edged away from the southeastern Bahamas and, to some extent, became lost at sea Saturday. Forecasters acknowledged they could not reliably predict its next move.

The possibilities ranged from the best case - a sharp turn northeast and away from land - to the worst case - an advance on Florida or another state in the Southeast. The most likely outcome appeared to be a slow, indecisive cruise northward, at least temporarily away from the Bahamas and Florida.

"It is probably obvious that this is not a high confidence forecast," said hurricane specialist James Franklin of the National Hurricane Center in West Miami-Dade County.

At issue was a complicated atmospheric ballet between Jeanne, the remnants of Ivan and a large high pressure system. Each of a dozen computerized forecast models predicted a different outcome.

At any rate, the southeastern Bahamas were under a tropical storm warning. Residents of the Acklins, Crooked Island, the Inaguas, the Ragged Islands and Mayaguana shuttered homes and businesses.

"We boarded up," said Eleanor Walkine, who along with her husband, Kirk, owns the five-room Walkine Guest House in Matthew Town, on Great Inagua, an island of 1,200 residents. "People are concerned about it."

Last week, Jeanne swept across Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, killing eight people, flooding roads and homes, and causing wide-ranging power outages.

President Bush declared Puerto Rico a disaster area Saturday, freeing up emergency funds.
BY MARTIN MERZER
Knight Ridder Newspapers

First fatal victim of Hurricane Jeanne

2004-09-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

The body of Margarita Rivera, 49, lies on her neighbor's roof after the strong winds of the Tropical Storm Jeanne tore off her roof with her hammock attatched to the celling while she and her husband were sleeping in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico on Wednesday Sept. 15, 2004. Her husband survived. (AP Photo/ Herminio Rodriguez)

The roof and hamoc of Margarita Rivera, first fatal victim of the strong winds of the Tropical Storm Jeanne, lays in the street of a urban community in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico on Wednesday September, 15, 2004. Jeanne tore off Rivera's roof with her hammock attatched to the celling while she and her husband were sleeping. Her husband survived. (AP Photo/ Herminio Rodriguez)

Hurricane Jeanne slamming the Dominican Republic

2004-09-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

Tropical Storm Jeanne became a hurricane on September 16, 2004, raising the threat to the Dominican Republic, Haiti and hundreds of islands in the northern Caribbean. Jeanne's sustained winds grew to 80 mph as it walloped Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory that is home to about 4 million people, and the Dominican Republic. This satellite image shows Jeanne (bottom right) and Hurricane Ivan (top left) (NOAA via Reuters)

Jeanne's sustained winds grew to 80 mph as it walloped Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory that is home to about 4 million people, and the Dominican Republic.

Residents on the north coast of Haiti, the poor nation of 8 million that shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic, were warned to expect tropical storm conditions. Haiti has been largely deforested and is vulnerable to deadly flash floods and mudslides.

The southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos, a British colony, were also under storm alerts.

At 8 a.m. EDT, the center of the storm was over the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic at latitude 18.7 north and longitude 68.4 west, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

It was moving due west at about 9 mph and was expected to turn slightly, toward the west-northwest, in the next 24 hours, forecasters said.

Forecasters said the Dominican Republic, where nearly 9 million people live, could expect up to 13 inches of rain that could trigger floods and mudslides.

The soggy system, which struck Puerto Rico as a tropical storm, dumped more than a foot of rain on the island and sent many rivers to flood levels.

Jeanne was the 10th tropical storm of the busy Atlantic hurricane season and became the sixth to turn into a hurricane. The average season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30, has about 10 tropical storms.

Jeanne became a hurricane as Ivan pounded the U.S. Gulf Coast after slamming ashore in Alabama with winds of 130 mph. Ivan has killed at least 70 people.

Major Flooding in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Jeanne

2004-09-16T08:25:00.000-07:00

Two men try to ride their bikes on a flooded street in the Catano municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2004. Tropical Storm Jeanne slammed into Puerto Rico flooding neighborhoods, knocking out power and stranding thousands of tourists in the U.S. territory where hundreds fled low-lying areas. At least two people were killed. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

A rescuer jumps on top of a car under water in Canovanas a Municipality at the northeastern part of Puerto Rico flooded by the path of Tropical Storm Jeanne, September 15, 2004. Jeanne hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday en route to the northern coast of the Dominican Republic, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Wednesday in its latest forecast. Heavy rain from Tropical Storm Jeanne spread over Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Wednesday as the storm strengthened and threatened a host of Caribbean islands. REUTERS/Ana Martinez

Rescuers (R) wade through waters to help a family trapped in flood waters from Tropical Storm Jeanne in the sector of San Isidro in the Municipality of Canovanas, at the northeastern part of the Caribbean Island of Puerto Rico, September 15, 2004

Omayra Reyes, 23, and her daughter Omayra Lee Martinez, 5, cross a flooded street in front of their house as Tropical Storm Jeanne hits Yabucoa, Puerto Rico on Wednesday Sept. 15, 2004. Tropical Storm Jeanne slammed into Puerto Rico on Wednesday, flooding neighborhoods, knocking out power and stranding thousands of tourists in the U.S. territory where hundreds fled low-lying areas. At least two people were killed. (AP Photo/ Herminio Rodriguez)

Jeanne becomes Hurricane

2004-09-16T08:19:00.000-07:00

This satellite image gathered at 7:53 a.m. EDT Thursday Sept. 16, 2004 shows Hurricane Jeanne hugging the northern coast of the Dominican Republic, moving west near 9 mph, with a gradual turn toward the west-northwest expected in the next 24 hours. Jeanne strengthened from a tropical storm into the sixth hurricane of the season and struck the evacuated eastern tip of the Dominican Republic on Thursday. (AP Photo/NOAA)

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic - Jeanne strengthened from a tropical storm into the sixth hurricane of the season and struck the evacuated eastern tip of the Dominican Republic on Thursday, a day after lashing Puerto Rico with damaging winds and rain that knocked out power, flooded roads and killed two people.

A hurricane warning was posted for the eastern and northern coasts of the Dominican Republic, as forecasters told the storm-weary Caribbean to monitor the progress of Jeanne, which had 80 mph winds with higher gusts.

The storm could potentially reach Florida, Georgia and South Carolina by the beginning of next week, according to the National Hurricane Center (news - web sites) in Miami.

"It is over land as we speak ... right on Cabo Engano," said meteorologist Mike Tichacek of the hurricane center.

The small fishing and farming village was evacuated Wednesday by Dominican authorities who said hundreds of people fled homes on the north coast and outlying island of Saona.

At 8 a.m. EDT, Jeanne was hugging the northern coast of the Dominican Republic, moving west near 9 mph, with a gradual turn toward the west-northwest expected in the next 24 hours.

A tropical storm becomes a hurricane when its winds reach 74 mph.

But even as a tropical storm, Jeanne was powerful enough to cause havoc in Puerto Rico, buffeting the island of 4 million with wind gusts near 80 mph.

About 3,600 Puerto Ricans were evacuated to shelters, 38 roads were blocked, most residents were without electricity and some 600,000 were without running water, Gov. Sila Calderon said.

"A sudden storm hit us in an unexpected way and with a strength much greater than we had expected," she said at a news conference Thursday. "It left a wake of destruction that we now have to face."

Government offices would remain closed a second day, she said, urging people who did not need to go to work to stay home to aid clean-up efforts on debris-strewn roads.

Police rescued one couple from a car stuck in rising floodwaters on a main highway in north-coast Rio Grande before the vehicle was swept away, authorities said.

"They got out through the window," emergency official Hector Rosa said.

Others were not so fortunate.

Lashing winds tore the roof from Margarita Rivera's house, flung her from a hammock and smashed her into the wall of a neighbor's house, said Mayor Angel Garcia of Yabucoa, the southeastern town where the storm's eye hit land. Rivera, who died, was 49.

In north-coast Vega Baja, 78-year-old Arturo Roman Crespo died instantly after falling from a roof where he was putting up storm shutters, police said. They also reported a man injured in the central town of Lares when a downed tree hit his car.

Agriculture officials said plantain, banana and coffee crops probably sustained major damage.

The storm plowed northwest across the middle of the island and exited near Vega Baja, said meteorologist Scott Stripling of the U.S. National Weather Service

Jeanne dumped up to 16 inches of rain on Puerto Rico that could continue through Friday because the storm's tail extended far past St. Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, said Rafael Mojica, a hurricane center meteorologist.

About 50,000 people lost power in St. Croix, but half were back by evening, officials said. Airports in the U.S. Virgin Islands remained closed.

Jeanne was expected to skirt the northeast coast of the Hispaniola island, where floods in May killed more than 3,000 in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Jeanne was then forecast to pass the 700-island Bahamas chain, recently battered by Hurricane Frances, the Hurricane Center said.

In Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, airports were closed and businesses shuttered. Wednesday night, people mobbed a Ben and Jerry's ice cream parlor that was giving away ice cream that otherwise would spoil in the blacked-out Puerto Rican capital.

Jeanne became the 10th named storm of a busy Atlantic season Tuesday. Three major hurricanes have been through in two weeks — Charley, Frances and the deadliest of them all, Ivan, which killed 68 people in the Caribbean.

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Associated Press reporters Frank Griffiths, Ian James, Paisley Dodds and Manuel Ernesto Rivera in Puerto Rico and Mat Probasco in the U.S. Virgin Islands contributed to this report.

Tropical Storm Jeanne pounds Puerto Rico

2004-09-15T13:53:00.000-07:00

A man arrives at a shelter in San Juan, as Tropical Storm Jeanne approaches. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

Tropical Storm Jeanne Slams Into in Puerto Rico As It Nears Hurricane Strength
The Associated Press
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico Sept. 15, 2004 — Tropical Storm Jeanne, nearing hurricane strength, slammed into Puerto Rico on Wednesday as rivers rose, roads flowed with torrents of water and frantic residents evacuated low-lying areas.
Lashing rains and wind blew plants off terraces and felled trees as the storm's eye made landfall on the southeastern tip of the island Wednesday afternoon.

"The biggest concern for Puerto Rico is flashflooding and mudslides," said Hector Guerrero, a meteorologist at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Streets in the tourist hub of colonial Old San Juan were deserted and most flights had been canceled. The largest mall in the Caribbean Plaza las Americas was also shut and Gov. Sila Calderon prohibited alcohol sales for the day to keep citizens alert.
The storm's projected path had it potentially reaching hurricane-weary Florida, Georgia and South Carolina either Sunday or Monday.
Jeanne is on track toward the island of Hispaniola where floods in May killed more than 3,000, and the Bahamas a chain of more than 700 islands that was battered recently by Hurricane Frances.
Chris Hennon, a meteorologist with the National Hurricane Center in Miami, said Jeanne will probably become a hurricane Wednesday.
All Puerto Rican ports were closed. Gov. Sila Calderon banned alcohol sales in hopes of keeping citizens alert and urged people to stay indoors.
The largest mall in the Caribbean Plaza las Americas also was shut. Streets in the tourist hub of colonial Old San Juan were deserted and most flights had been canceled.
Calderon said Jeanne had cut water service to some 30,000 people in the northeast and knocked out electricity in about 1,000 homes just outside San Juan. Nearly 800 people had evacuated and were staying in shelters throughout Puerto Rico.
The storm passed St. Croix, the southernmost of the U.S. Virgin Islands, overnight, dumping about 7 inches of rain and leaving about 50,000 people without power, officials said.
At 2 p.m. EDT, Jeanne's center was about 25 miles south-southwest of San Juan.
Maximum sustained wind was near 70 mph, just 4 mph below hurricane status. Winds extended 60 miles.
"In the past year, we've lost everything in floods," said Francisco Santiago, one of 10 people who took refuge at a shelter in Yabucoa in the southeast where more than 2 inches of rain has fallen and strong bursts of wind were being felt.
Shell Chemicals shut a petrochemical refinery in Yabacoa because of the storm.
Passenger ferry service to Puerto Rico's outlying tourist islands of Vieques and Culebra was suspended, authorities said. Government offices and courts were closed in Puerto Rico.
Carnival Cruise Lines diverted four ships because of Jeanne, said spokesman Vance Gullicksen. Disney Cruise Line diverted the Disney Magic to Nassau, Bahamas, instead of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, said spokeswoman Rena Langley.
Few cars were on the roads, but at Mi Antojito cafe in north-coast Luquillo, Nancy Lauriano served grilled ham-and-cheese sandwiches to a trickle of people clutching windblown umbrellas.
"It came fast, too fast, but looks weak to me. I think only water is going to come," Lauriano said.
She had fixed metal storm shutters around her home, but many houses were left unprotected.
Jeanne, the 10th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, was moving west-northwest near 8 mph.
In the past two weeks, the region has seen three major hurricanes Charley, Frances and the deadliest of them all, Ivan, which killed 68 people in the Caribbean. Ivan was near the mouth of the Mississippi River, threatening to hit the U.S. mainland on Thursday.
"It just never stops!" said Merce Roca, a real estate agent in the old colonial section of San Juan, where she spent hours bolting her mansion's large wooden doors and pulling tropical plants in from her courtyard. "It seems like we've been doing this everyday."
American Airlines canceled 17 flights leaving San Juan and six to the city on Wednesday.
Government offices, schools and courts and banks were closed Wednesday, and casinos which draw thousands of tourists to the U.S. territory each day and have to be inspected by government officials likely would remain idle. Mail would not be delivered.
Eight to 12 inches of rainfall were expected in Puerto Rico, which last was struck by Hurricane Georges in 1998.
The U.S. Virgin Islands emergency management agency gave sandbags to residents in low-lying areas and told them to be ready to evacuate even though the storm was not forecast to directly strike the territory of 110,000 residents.
Heavy rains associated with Jeanne lashed the British Virgin Islands on Tuesday night, causing minor landslides across hilly areas. Debris covered sections of roads in Tortola.
Some 50,000 lost power in St. Croix, the southernmost of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which the storm passed overnight, officials said. Airports in the U.S. Virgin Islands remained closed.
Associated Press reporters Paisley Dodds in San Juan and Mat Probasco in the U.S. Virgin Islands contributed to this report.

Latest Tropical Storm Jeanne projected path and satellite image

2004-09-15T02:48:00.000-07:00

Tropical Storm Jeanne forms in Atlantic

2004-09-14T11:54:00.000-07:00

Although not officially Hurricane Jeanne yet, we are watching Tropical Storm Jeanne which formed yesterday.

ASSOCIATED PRESS 10:44 a.m. September 14, 2004
MIAMI – Tropical Storm Jeanne formed in the Atlantic Ocean Tuesday and was expected to hit Puerto Rico by Wednesday morning, bringing strong wind and heavy rain.
Because of Jeanne, the National Hurricane Center posted tropical storm warnings for Puerto Rico, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis.
Jeanne could be packing sustained winds of 60 mph and drop 9 inches of rain when it hits Puerto Rico, center forecasters said.
"It's not the same as Ivan, but it is certainly threatening weather," forecaster Rafael Mojica said.
At 11 a.m. EDT, Tropical Storm Jeanne had top sustained winds of 40 mph and was expected to strengthen. It was centered about 135 southeast of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands and was moving west-northwest at about 12 mph.
Forecasters predict Ttropical Storm Jeanne could hit or skim past the Dominican Republic on Thursday, Haiti on Friday and move over the eastern tip of Cuba or into the Bahamas by Saturday. There is a chance the storm could hit Florida early next week. Mojica said it could become a Category 1 hurricane Jeanne with winds topping 74 mph by Saturday.
Jeanne is the 10th named storm to form in the Atlantic this tropical storm season, which began June 1. Three have hit Florida, and Hurricane Ivan is threatening to hit the Panhandle later this week.
Hurricanes Charley and Frances caused up to $20 billion in damage to Florida and killed at least 50 people when they struck the state. Tropical Storm Bonnie caused minimal damage when it struck the Panhandle.