TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Virgin Islands In Path Of Hurricane Omar

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: October 16, 2008

CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands - Schools, businesses and a large oil refinery closed Wednesday on several Caribbean islands in the path of Hurricane Omar, which revved up to a Category 2 storm Wednesday night.

U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. John deJongh closed all public schools, told government employees to head home at midmorning and imposed a 6 p.m. curfew on the islands of St. Thomas and St. John. He also activated the National Guard.

"Take this very seriously," he said. "Folks are out right now doing their last-minute shopping, and that's understandable. Once that's done, we encourage them to go home."

To the west in Puerto Rico, government offices closed early, adding to traffic jams as islanders headed home or sought emergency provisions. Omar should pass near Puerto Rico early this morning.

One death was reported in the neighboring island of Culebra. Authorities said a 55-year-old man collapsed from cardiac arrest while trying to install storm shutters on his house.

In the British Virgin Islands, residents flocked to supermarkets for supplies. To protect against deadly shocks from downed power lines, the electricity will be turned off across the territory once winds reach 40 mph, said government spokeswoman Sandra Ward.

In St. Croix, the Hovensa LLC oil refinery was shutting down.

St. Croix is the most-populous of the U.S. Virgin Islands with more than 50,000 people. It stood in the direct path of the late-season storm.
Hurricane warnings were also in place for Anguilla, St. Martin, and St. Barts. The National Hurricane Center in Miami expected Omar to plow over the northeastern Caribbean islands then head into the central North Atlantic, well away from the U.S. mainland.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT