Over 100 Feared Dead in Haiti Floods; Jeanne and Karl Turn North

Tropical Storm Jeanne has left more than 100 people reported dead from floods caused by heavy rains, as it passed along the Haitian coast. Although by recent standards Jeanne was a relatively weak storm, it was nonetheless deadly.

The BBC reported that “almost the entire northern city of Gonaives has been submerged.” The heavy rains lashed the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country unmercifully for two days, sending torrents of water cascading through streets and down hillside gullies, engulfing anything in its path. At least 90 people have been confirmed dead and another 150 are reported missing.

Meanwhile storm warnings have been called off in the Bahamas, as Jeanne took an abrupt turn to the north, and headed out over the waters of the Atlantic away from any landmass, including Florida (see related article in national section).

Hurricane Karl, with maximum sustained winds of around 125 mph (200 km/hr), has also turned north into the mid-Atlantic, and is not expected to pose any immediate threat to land.