‘Catastrophic’ Maria threat in Caribbean

HURRICANE Maria last night strengthened to an “extremely dangerous” category-four storm as it barrelled towards several Caribbean islands.

Maria was moving along roughly the same path as Hurricane Irma and, with winds of 130mph, was due to strike the island of Dominica early today.

Hurricane warnings were issued for the British Virgin Islands, Guadeloupe, Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Martinique and St Lucia – all still recovering from Irma, which killed at least 37 people.

The US National Hurricane Center said Maria was expected to continue to gain strength for the next 24 hours or longer and could reach category-five status.

Forecasters said “potentially life-threatening” storm surges could raise water levels by six to nine feet near the centre.

Maria was also predicted to bring 10in to 15in of rain across the islands, with more in isolated areas.

The French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe – the bridgehead for aid for Irmahit French territories – ordered all at-risk zones to be evacuated.

If it keeps on the same trajectory, Maria would directly strike Puerto Rico tomorrow. “This storm promises to be catastrophic for our island,” said Ernesto Morales with the US National Weather Service in San Juan.