Tourists flee holiday isle as Hurricane Ike approaches

Hurricane Ike barrelled toward the Turks and Caicos as a powerful Category 3 storm today, prompting an exodus of tourists and residents from the normally idyllic Atlantic island chain.

Turks and Caicos and the southern Bahamas appeared to be first in line to take a hit from Ike, and many people decided they would be better off elsewhere. For some, the decision to flee came too late.

Authorities planned to close the airport at noon, and even with extra flights scheduled, some had trouble finding seats.

“The flights look impossible at the moment,” said a dejected Patrick Munro said outside the terminal in Providenciales. He had hoped to return to his native Bahamas to be with his wife and child when the storm gets there.

“As I watched the weather forecast it looks really, really serious and I think it’s going to be devastating,” he said.

“I don’t remember ever seeing a mass exodus like this,” said Tracy Paradis, a long-time resident of Providenciales who was heading to Seattle with her 19-month-old twins to wait out the storm.

The low-lying island chain, a British overseas territory, was pummelled for four days by Hanna earlier this week. That storm caused widespread flooding, and knocked down trees, light poles and an important causeway that links North Caicos and Middle Caicos.

Premier Michael Misick toured some of the hardest-hit areas and pledged government aid while also warning people to heed the warnings about Ike.

Ike’s eye was about 215 miles east of Grand Turk Island around dawn today. It was moving west-south-west about 16 mph and had maximum sustained winds near 115 mph. Forecasters said Ike could be near or over the Turks and Caicos and south-eastern Bahamas by early Sunday.

Beyond that along Ike’s projected course stand Cuba’s two chief tourist centres: Varadero beach and Havana, the seaside capital of 2.3 million people.

Business in Providenciales covered windows with plywood, and most hotels closed and ordered tourists out.

In the Bahamas, the government urged tourists to evacuate the sparsely populated south-eastern islands.

“We are strongly encouraging all of our visitors to voluntarily evacuate,” said Vernice Walkine, director general of the Tourism Ministry.

Meanwhile, UN peacekeepers and aid groups in Haiti struggled to feed thousands left hungry by Tropical Storm Hanna, but had yet to reach thousands.

Officials feared fatalities in Haiti from Hanna could rise above the 163 confirmed dead, but said a report of a higher death toll was based on an unconfirmed estimate.

More bad weather is expected, which could impede aid delivery, recovery of bodies and – with the ground already saturated and rivers overflowing – kill even more people.

With Category 3 hurricane Ike approaching, the National Hurricane Centre in Miami issued a tropical storm warning today for parts of Haiti, including Gonaives.

The UN World Food Programme said that successive deadly storms have displaced hundreds of thousands of people and destroyed scores of homes and plantations. A ship chartered by the WFP arrived on Friday carrying food and water, which peacekeepers began delivering to desperate survivors of Hanna who in emergency shelters.