Monster Hurricane Dorian smashes into Bahamas as US braces for impact
- Bahamas facing a hurricane like ‘never in history, prime minister warns
- The threat to Florida remains uncertain, with forecasters saying the storm could turn north up the coast to threaten landfall in Georgia or the Carolinas
Hurricane Dorian struck the northern Bahamas on Sunday as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, its record 295 kph (185mph) winds ripping off roofs and tearing down power lines as hundreds hunkered in schools, churches and other shelters.
Dorian hit land in Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands and then made a second landfall near Marsh Harbour on Great Abaco Island, after authorities made last-minute pleas for those in low-lying areas to evacuate.
With its maximum sustained winds, Dorian tied the record for the most powerful Atlantic hurricane ever to come ashore, equaling the Labour Day hurricane of 1935, before the storms were named.
Millions from Florida to the Carolinas kept a wary eye on the slow-moving Dorian amid indications it would veer sharply northeastward after passing the Bahamas and track up the US Southeast seaboard
Even a glancing blow from one of the strongest storms ever to menace Florida could bring torrential rains and damaging winds, and “a Florida landfall is still a distinct possibility”, the Miami-based NHC warned.
Bahamas residents reported trees snapping and docks being destroyed before the brunt of the storm arrived.
