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Learning English - Words in the News 13 September, 2004 - Published 12:39 GMT Hurricane Ivan | |||||||||||||||
Strong winds have battered the Cayman Islands as Hurricane Ivan continues its destructive path across the Caribbean. The hurricane is now moving northwest across the Caribbean Sea and is expected to hit the far west of Cuba this afternoon. This report from Stephen Gibbs: The eye of the storm passed just to the west of Grand Cayman, the largest of the tiny Cayman Islands. With it came torrential rains and violent winds, Ivan's now familiar calling card. Much of Grand Cayman is now underwater. Reports say some people have been forced to climb on to the roofs of their homes as the sea swirls beneath them. Ivan is now hanging menacingly to the south of Cuba, its next likely victim, but all day its path has veered a little further to the west than originally predicted. It is now expected to just clip the westernmost tip of the Cuban mainland. That is some relief to this, the largest island in the Caribbean, but the Cuban authorities are well aware that Ivan does not need to make a direct hit to wreak serious damage. They have moved 1.3 million people out of harm's way. The Cuban president Fidel Castro has made repeated appearances on state television to monitor Ivan's progress. His country, he says, is prepared. Stephen Gibbs, BBC News, Havana. eye of the storm torrential calling card swirls menacingly veered clip to wreak serious damage out of harm's way |
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