Residents of Bermuda were today hauling their boats on to beaches and shuttering their homes as Tropical Storm Gert nears the archipelago.

Slow-moving Bertha barely clung to its hurricane status as it hovered near Bermuda, but forecasters said it could pick up speed and still deal a glancing blow to the island.

Bermuda is on hurricane alert today as Tropical Storm Florence intensifies on its path through the open Atlantic towards the tiny British territory.