The remnants of the first named storm of the hurricane season churned through the south-eastern US early today, bringing much-needed rain and offering officials a chance to practice their storm preparations.

HURRICANE Ophelia hovered off the coast of the south-eastern US yesterday and could hit North Carolina later in the week, forecasters said.

Heavy rain drenched parts of Florida early today and heavy surf pounded beaches as Tropical Storm Arlene plodded toward the south-eastern US, chasing a few weather-weary residents into shelters.

The ivory-billed woodpecker, once prized for its plumage and sought by American Indians as magical, was thought to be extinct for years. Now it’s been sighted again, and conservationists are exulting.

RELIEF workers are warning of an epidemic of diseases such as malaria and tetanus in Haiti, as a humanitarian crisis mounts following devastating floods that killed 1,650 people and left 400,000 homeless.

TROPICAL storm Jeanne brought raging floodwaters to Haiti, killing at least 250 people and leaving dozens of families huddled on rooftops as the storm pushed further out into the open seas, officials said.