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Bermuda cleans up after FabianFour people presumed dead
HAMILTON, Bermuda (CNN) -- As Bermuda counted the cost of damage brought by powerful Hurricane Fabian, weather forecasters were watching closely as Hurricane Isabel formed in the mid-Atlantic. But Hurricane Isabel, with 80 mph (130 kph) sustained winds, remained far from land. At 5 p.m., the storm was 1510 miles (2,430 kilometers) east of the Leeward Islands, moving west-northwest near 10 mph (17 kph). The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm would likely strengthen as it approaches the Caribbean on a path similar to the one followed by Hurricane Fabian, which slammed Bermuda. But the forecasts for Isabel, the fourth Hurricane of the season, do not include the northeasterly turn that sent Fabian toward Bermuda. Some forecasters said the storm could reach windspeeds approaching 115 mph -- only slightly less powerful than Fabian. Four people, including two police officers, are missing and presumed dead in the aftermath of Fabian, which pounded Bermuda on Friday with 120 mph (193 kph) winds for more than five hours, before moving over the island and back into the Atlantic. Bermuda Premier Alex Scott said all four of the missing were from a single incident on a bridge, now partially collapsed, leading to Bermuda's airport. He said two police officers and a civilian tried to rescue two civilians, trapped in separate cars on the bridge. One of the civilians reached safety, he said, but the police car and the other civilian car were swept into the inlet by the hurricane's crashing waves. The cars were found Saturday morning, the premier said, but the four remain unaccounted for. Scott said a hurricane had not killed anyone in Bermuda since a Category 3 storm scored a direct hit in 1926. That unnamed storm was the last major storm to hit the islands. RecoveryCNN correspondent Gary Tuchman and his crew, watching the storm from Southhampton Parish on Bermuda's southwest corner, drove the streets shortly after the worst of the storm and said there were hundreds of fallen trees and downed power lines. Tuchman said the hotel where he is staying was shaking and that a nearby beachside restaurant had been swallowed by the ocean. The winds also snapped power lines and trees, leaving them littered in the streets. In addition, roofs of buildings have been ripped off. Scott said that 70 percent of Bermuda power customers were without electricity Saturday, but added that "Bermuda is well on the road to recovery and restoration" and "is open for business locally, and internationally in the very near future." He said officials hoped to have the bridge to the airport temporarily repaired and the airport open later in the day. At 5 p.m. EDT, Fabian's had weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds reaching 90 mph (150 kph), the National Hurricane Center said. The eye of the storm was centered about 290 miles (470 km) southwest of Cape Race, Newfoundland, rushing northeast at 31 mph (50 kph). The storm is expected to continue its northeast path Saturday. The effects of Fabian will also be felt on parts of the East Coast of the United States as large swells pound the shoreline. Henri likely to cause floodingMeanwhile, forecasters warn that the remnants of Tropical Storm Henri could lead to serious flooding in Florida's Gulf Coast, which is already saturated. The storm was downgraded Saturday to a tropical depression but could return to tropical storm strength in the next 24 hours. As of 5 p.m. EDT Sunday, the center of the storm was about 160 miles (257 km) southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, with maximum sustained winds near 35 mph (55 km/h).
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