UPDATED AT 1:50 AM EDT
Sunday, Sep 5, 2004
Frances wreaks havoc in Florida
By TIMOTHY APPLEBY
Globe and Mail Update
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West Palm Beach, Fla. -
Hurricane Frances reached Florida's southeast coast early Sunday bringing
widespread
damage with it and plunging millions into darkness.
The National Hurricane Center said the hurricane officially made landfall
near Sewall's
Point, just east of Stuart, about 1 a.m. Floridians were bracing for a tense
evening
when the more intense winds from the back end of the storm were expected to
hit around
3 a.m.
Hardest hit were Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Okeechobee and Indian River
counties.
There have been only a few reported injuries so far, but at least two
million people
were without electricity as power lines went down, several large buildings
had collapsed
and countless roads were blocked by fallen trees and debris.
Flooding, too, was already under way and an emergency shelter for special
needs children
in the city of Stuart was reported to be inundated with water and backed-up
sewage.
In Indian River County, a blanket curfew was ordered at 1 p.m. with similar
measures
to take effect elsewhere at nightfall. The sale of alcohol and guns was also
banned
in at least two counties.
As the winds picked up, making driving hazardous, rescue operations were
suspended
in several communities.
On the coast, crashing waves three or four metres high could be seen
pounding the
shoreline and setting boats adrift. Packing a force of around 160 kilometres
an hour,
the eye of Frances was about 110 kilometres offshore at 2:30 p.m. It is
expected
to make landfall near West Palm Beach early tomorrow.
And while Frances has been downgraded to a Category 2 hurricane, its
slow-moving
pace is sure to create major flooding problems.
The storm's leading edge pounded the Florida coast early Saturday, and about
300
miles of coastline remained under a hurricane warning. Frances was so big
that virtually
the entire state feared damage from wind and water. Forecasters said the
storm would
dump 8 to 12 inches of rain, with up to 20 inches in some areas.
"This is the time to show some resolve and not be impatient," Gov. Jeb Bush
said.
"This is a dangerous, dangerous storm."
The largest evacuation in state history, with 2.8 million residents ordered
inland,
sent 70,000 residents and tourists into shelters. The storm shut down much
of Florida,
including airports and amusement parks, at the start of the usually busy
Labor Day
weekend.
Not everyone stayed home: Two men were charged with looting for trying to
break into
a Brevard County church.
As the weather worsened, a yacht adrift on the Intercoastal Waterway
struggled for
more than half an hour in choppy water to anchor in West Palm Beach before
tying
up to a dock. Other boats bobbed like toys. A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter
rescued
a man and his cat riding out the storm on a sailboat anchored in Biscayne
Bay.
At Palm Beach International Airport, the roof and a door were blown off a
hangar.
The storm extended vacations for about 10,000 passengers on nine cruise
ships unable
return to Miami's port on schedule. They were expected to arrive late Sunday
or Monday.
By late afternoon, Frances was centered about 80 kilometres east of Palm
Beach and
moving to the west-northwest. The storm had redeveloped an eye about 100
kilometres
across, indicating that it could strengthen slightly while over warm open
water between
the Bahamas and the coast, forecasters at the hurricane centre said.
Hurricane-force
wind extended outward up to 110 kilometres from its centre.
The slow movement and large eye will mean several hours of calm for some
locations
after they are battered by the strongest winds.
Frances was expected to push across the state as a tropical storm just north
of Tampa,
weaken to a tropical depression and drench the Panhandle on Monday before
moving
into Alabama.
The ninth named storm of the season grew stronger Saturday in the far
eastern Atlantic.
Tropical Storm Ivan was about 2,000 kilometres east-southeast of the Lesser
Antilles
with winds of 90 kph.
With a report from Associated Press
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