People flee as Earl hits US east coast

UNITED STATES holidaymakers yesterday began to flee the path of Hurricane Earl, slightly weakened but still packing potentially devastating winds and rains as it sped toward the US east coast.

Weather experts said the category three storm — which once been as powerful as a category four — was likely to spin northeast of the Bahamas yesterday, taking aim at coastal North Carolina, with landfall possible early Friday.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) Administrator Craig Fugate warned coastal residents to evacuate, as ordered by state and local governments.

"We continue to monitor Hurricane Earl and remain in close contact with state, territorial and local officials to ensure they have the resources to respond if needed," said Fugate, who was due to brief Wednesday with President Barack Obama about progress of the storm. "I encourage everyone in the region and along the eastern seaboard to... take steps now to keep their family safe and secure," he said. At 8am yesterday Earl was located about 1225km south-southeast of the coastal enclave of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, the NHC said. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 125km and was moving toward the northwest. Projections by the Miami-based National Hurricane Centre said there was also a good chance Earl could make landfall as far north as New England.

Fugate told US television that when he briefs Obama later Wednesday, "we're going to talk about what we're doing to support the states, but also looking at the fact that we have to have teams ready to go from the Carolinas all the way to Maine," he said.

"We're working to support our state partners in this evacuation and also a response, if required," he told ABC television.

News reports said authorities in Long Island just outside New York City, also were weighing an evacuation order, and Fugate told ABC that numerous towns and cities in the storm's path would have a similar decision to make. "It's really based upon each community," the top US disaster official said, adding that the key was to issue the orders in a timely enough fashion so that residents trying to flee could actually do so without being overtaken by weather.AFP