A woman looks at a building damaged by Hurricane Humberto in Blue Hole Park, Bermuda yesterday. Humberto knocked out power and tore off roofs but caused no reported deaths. Photo / AP
A woman looks at a building damaged by Hurricane Humberto in Blue Hole Park, Bermuda yesterday. Humberto knocked out power and tore off roofs but caused no reported deaths. Photo / AP
Hurricane Humberto blew off rooftops, toppled trees and knocked out power as it blew past the British Atlantic island of Bermuda. But officials said yesterday that the Category 3 storm caused no reported deaths.
"We've made it through and everyone is safe," Premier David Burt said. "That's what is most important."
Security Minister Wayne Caines said power had been restored to most customers by midday Thursday and emergency crews were clearing roads of power lines damaged by the hurricane, which had winds of about 195kmh at its nearest approach the Bermuda Wednesday night.
He said that government offices would reopen Friday, even if schools would remain closed.
"The country is getting back on its feet and the good news is there was no loss of life," Caines said.
A city worker directs traffic away from trees felled by the Category 3 Hurricane Humberto, in the Devonshire parish of Bermuda. Photo / AP
The US National Hurricane Center said Humberto would still kick up high surf in Bermuda and along the US East Coast.
The storm had maximum sustained winds of at 175kmh late Thursday morning, with tropical storm-force winds extending outward for 650km, covering a huge swath of ocean. The storm was centered about 665km northeast of Bermuda and moving to the northeast at a brisk 39kmh.
Meanwhile, a brush with land near Puerto Vallarta knocked newly formed Hurricane Lorena back down to tropical storm force, though forecasters said it would soon become a hurricane again on a track that would carry it close to the Los Cabos resorts at the tip of the Baja California Peninsula by Friday night or Saturday.
The storm had maximum sustained winds of 110kmh and it was centred about 25km west-northwest of Cabo Corrientes, which juts into the Pacific below Puerto Vallarta. It was moving to the northwest at 17kmh.
Forecasters said the storm could bring 12.5cm to 25cm of rain to parts of the region and Mexican officials voiced concern that some parts of southern Mexico, which have seen a lack of rainfall, could suffer dangerous flash floods and landslides unleashed by torrential rain.
A city worker directs traffic away from trees felled by the Category 3 Hurricane Humberto, in the Devonshire parish of Bermuda. Photo / AP
Schools were closed in parts of the region as a precaution.
Another tropical storm, Mario, was also moving north across the Pacific several hundred miles further out to sea. It was located about 730km south-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula and had sustained winds of 100kmh. It wasn't expected to hit land, however.
In Texas and Louisiana, the remains of Tropical Depression Imelda kept bringing rains and flooding. Forecasters warned that Imelda could bring up to 90cm of rain this week in some areas of Texas through Friday.
In the Texas town of Winnie, about 95km east of Houston, a hospital was evacuated and water was inundating several homes and businesses.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic region, Jerry strengthened into a hurricane on a track that would carry it near the northern Leeward Islands on Friday and north of Puerto Rico on Saturday.
It had maximum sustained winds of 120kmh and was located about 785km east of the Leeward Islands. It was moving to the west-northwest at 26kmh.
