As Hanna struck, Florida’s governor urged residents to prepare for an even more powerful storm, Hurricane Ike, which threatened the neighboring Bahamas and Cuba.

Hanna, which has already left hundreds dead in Haiti, triggered emergency operations along more than 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) of the North and South Carolina coastline. The eye of the storm moved quickly across the Carolinas after crashing on the border of the neighboring states in the early morning, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

The stormed packed sustained winds near 110 kilometers (70 miles) per hour when it made landfall. It later weakened with winds of 85 kph (50 mph) as it moved inland, making its way to southern Virginia.

The hurricane center warned that Hanna could trigger tornadoes in North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland.

The storm was expected to produce four to six inches (10 to 15 centimeters) of rain across the northeast from North Carolina to New York state. “These rainfall amounts could produce flash flooding across these regions,” the center said.

Hanna could also produce huge, dangerous waves with a storm surge of one to three feet above normal tide levels, the hurricane center said.

The governors of North Carolina and Virginia declared states of emergency. South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford called for people to evacuate two counties.

Subscribe to The China Post and save.  Click hereSharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Enter your comments - 800 characters max

Receive China Post promos

Respond to this email