Puerto Ricans told ‘evacuate or die’ as Maria storms in
THOUSANDS of Puerto Ricans have been told to “evacuate or die” as Hurricane Maria bears down on the island.
Having devastated the island of Dominica, Maria was cutting a deadly path west with Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands most at risk.
“You have to evacuate. Otherwise, you’re going to die,” Hector Pesquera, Puerto Rico’s public safety commissioner said. “I don’t know how to make this any clearer.”
His stark warning came as frantic preparations were being made across much of the Caribbean ahead of the arrival of the “potentially catastrophic” Category 5 hurricane.
With winds of 160mph, Maria is threatening to inflict mudslides, flash floods, and life-threatening storm surges throughout the region. It claimed its first victim in the French territory of Guadeloupe, and two other people were reported missing.
The storm is following a similar path to that of Hurricane Irma, which ripped across the Caribbean earlier this month, claiming at least 84 lives and reducing the is- land of Barbuda to rubble. With Maria tracking northwest, hurricane warnings have been issued for the US and British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, St Kitts, Nevis and Montserrat. A tropical storm warning was in force for Martinique, Antigua and Barbuda, Saba, St Eustatius, St Maarten, St Lucia and Anguilla.
Further west, residents of the British and US Virgin Islands were battening down the hatches ahead of Maria’s arrival. A curfew was in force on the British Virgin Islands, which has a population of just under 31,000. “Our islands are extremely vulnerable right now,” said Orlando Smith, the prime minister. “While Hurricane Maria may not be as strong as Hurricane Irma, our present reality is also very different. Effects such as potential flooding and high winds that can turn debris into dangerous projectiles can have a greater and more treacherous impact for us.”
Maria is expected to pass within 10 miles of St Croix, the largest of the US Virgin Islands, which has a yearround population of 55,000.