Hurricane Lili gave Louisiana’s coast a 100 mph overnight battering that swamped streets, knocked out power and snapped trees.

LESS powerful but still dangerous Hurricane Lili pounded low-lying Louisiana coastal towns in the USA with heavy wind and rain on Thursday as it washed inland. Nearly a half-million people had been urged to flee.

More than 127,000 Cubans fled today as Hurricane Lili struck the Caribbean island nation with violent winds and torrents of rain.

More than 100,000 people have fled their homes as Hurricane Lili began pounding western Cuba with heavy rain today.

A helicopter swooped down to rescue people from Jamaican rooftops while Tropical Storm Lili flooded dozens of homes and strengthened as it took aim at the Cayman Islands and Cuba today.