Hurricane Ernesto News Update: Tropical Storm Drops Torrential Rain on Puerto Rico, Strengthens Heading Toward Bermuda

Toa Baja, August 15: Hurricane Ernesto dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico and knocked out power for nearly half of all customers in the US territory on Wednesday as it threatened to strengthen into a major hurricane en route to Bermuda. The storm was over open water about 675 miles (1,085 kilometers) south-southwest of Bermuda early Thursday, with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph) and moving northwest at 16 mph (26 kph).

A hurricane watch was issued for Bermuda, where tropical storm conditions were possible on Friday and hurricane conditions were possible Saturday. Tropical storm warnings were discontinued for Puerto Rico and its outlying islands of Vieques and Culebra and for the US and British Virgin Islands after the storm passed.슬롯 머신 사이트 추천Hurricane Ernesto Aims for Bermuda After Leaving Many in Puerto Rico Without Power or Water.

슬롯사이트œI know it was a long night listening to that wind howl,슬롯사이트� US Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. said at a news conference. An islandwide blackout was reported on St. Croix, and at least six cellphone towers were offline across the US territory, said Daryl Jaschen, emergency management director.

Schools and government agencies were closed in the US and British Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, where heavy flooding was reported in several areas, forcing officials to block roads, some of which were strewn with trees. More than 140 flights were canceled to and from Puerto Rico. 슬롯사이트œA lot of rain, a lot of rain,슬롯사이트� Culebra Mayor Edilberto Romero said in a phone interview. 슬롯사이트œWe have trees that have fallen on public roads. There are some roofs that are blown off.슬롯사이트�슬롯 머신 사이트 추천Ernesto Becomes a Hurricane After Pummelling Northeast Caribbean and Knocking out Power in the Region.

Flash flood warnings remained up because of continuing rain. In the north coastal town of Toa Baja, which is prone to flooding, dozens of residents moved their cars to higher areas. 슬롯사이트œEveryone is worried,슬롯사이트� Víctor Báez said as he sipped beer with friends and watched the rain fall. He only briefly celebrated that he had power. 슬롯사이트œIt's going to go out again,슬롯사이트� he predicted.

Ernesto, a Category 1 hurricane, was gradually strengthening and could become a Category 3 hurricane by Friday. Its centre was expected to pass near Bermuda on Saturday. Between 3 and 6 inches of rain was forecast, with more possible in isolated places. 슬롯사이트œResidents need to prepare now before conditions worsen,슬롯사이트� Bermuda's National Security Minister Michael Weeks said. 슬롯사이트œNow is not the time for complacency.슬롯사이트�

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Forecasters also warned of heavy swells along the US East Coast. 슬롯사이트œThat means that anybody who goes to the beach, even if the weather is beautiful and nice, it could be dangerous 슬롯사이트� with those rip currents,슬롯사이트� said Robbie Berg, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Hurricane Centre.

More than 640,000 customers lost power in Puerto Rico, and 23 hospitals were operating on generators, Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said Wednesday. He added that crews were assessing damage and it was too early to tell when electricity would be restored. 슬롯사이트œWe are trying to get the system up and running as soon as we can,슬롯사이트� said Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, the company that operates transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico.

Luma Energy said earlier Wednesday that its priority was to restore power to hospitals, the island's water and sewer company and other essential services. More than 300,000 customers were without water as a result of power outages, Pierluisi said. Puerto Rico's power grid was razed by Hurricane Maria in 2017 as a Category 4 storm, and it remains frail as crews continue to rebuild the system.

슬롯사이트œIt's just frustrating that this many years later, we continue to see something like a storm cause such widespread outages in Puerto Rico, particularly given the risk that these outages can cause for vulnerable households in Puerto Rico,슬롯사이트� said Charlotte Gossett Navarro, the Hispanic Federation's chief director for Puerto Rico. Not everyone can afford generators on the island of 3.2 million people with a more than 40 per cent poverty rate.

슬롯사이트œPeople already prepared themselves with candles,슬롯사이트� said Lucía Rodríguez, a 31-year-old street vendor. Rooftop solar systems are scarce but keep growing in Puerto Rico, where fossil fuels generate 94 per cent of the island's electricity. At the time María hit, there were 8,000 rooftop installations, compared with more than 117,000 currently, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

Ernesto is the fifth named storm and the third hurricane of this year's Atlantic hurricane season. Since 1966, only four other years have had three or more hurricanes in the Atlantic by mid-August, according to Philip Klotzbach, Colorado State University hurricane researcher. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted an above-average Atlantic hurricane season this year because of record warm ocean temperatures. It forecast 17 to 25 named storms, with four to seven major hurricanes. (AP)