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Gustav already a hurricane, winds near 80 mph
8/26/2008
Gustav already a hurricane, winds near 80 mph
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August 26, 2008 - 8:11AM
Associated Press
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - Gustav became a hurricane early Tuesday as it approached Haiti's southern coast.
The fast-forming storm was also on track to hit Cuba.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the hurricane's maximum sustained winds were near 80 mph (130 kph).
Haitians were told to prepare for evacuations as the storm formed Monday in the Caribbean. Haiti upgraded storm warnings to hurricane warnings along much of its coast as Gustav closed in from the south.
Forecasters said storm preparations in Haiti should be rushed to completion and that floods and landslides were possible across its southern peninsula. The forecasts suggested Gustav's eye could pass near the capital of Port-au-Prince, home to nearly 3 million people.
The hurricane was centered about 130 miles (210 kilometers) south-southeast of Port-au-Prince and was moving toward the northwest near 12 mph (19 kph).
On Monday, Carnival Cruise Lines diverted one of its ships to a Mexican port instead of Montego Bay, Jamaica, to avoid the storm, company spokesman Vance Gulliksen said. Other cruise lines said they were closely tracking its path.
After passing over Haiti, Gustav was expected to hit Cuba's southeastern tip Wednesday.
The commander of the Guantanamo military base in Cuba, where the U.S. holds about 265 men, many suspected of belonging to al-Qaida or the Taliban, ordered U.S. military personnel to prepare for a hit late Tuesday or early Wednesday.
``We're monitoring the track of ... Gustav and reviewing our destructive weather plans and procedures,'' said Army Maj. Richard Morehouse, a spokesman for detention operations at the base.
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