US evacuates Guantanamo over Hurricane Matthew read more at here www.spinonews.com/index.php/item/1111-us-evacuates-guantanamo-over-hurricane-matthew

The United States prepared to airlift hundreds of people from its Guantanamo Bay naval base as the most powerful cyclone to form over the Atlantic since Hurricane Felix in 2007 ground slowly towards Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba.

Matthew is the strongest hurricane over the Atlantic Ocean since Felix in 2007. With maximum sustained winds of 240 kilometers per hour and higher gusts, Matthew is expected to remain a powerful storm through Sunday.

The Navy says people staying at the base and military detention center on the eastern end of the island of Cuba are being told to take shelter, and a mandatory evacuation of non-essential personnel is under way.

Haiti also began evacuating residents by boat from outlying islands in preparation for Hurricane Matthew, which threatens to wreak widespread damage in the region with flash floods and winds at about 150 miles per hour (240 kph).

Matthew is expected to make landfall as a major storm on Jamaica's southern coast, home to the capital, Kingston, and its only oil refinery. Stormy weather could begin on Sunday.

Weather forecasters predict rainfall of 25 to 38 centimeters with isolated amounts of more than 63 centimeters across Jamaica and southwestern Haiti. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said these rains may produce "life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides."

 

The storm is expected to dump considerable rain and create chaos on parts of the Caribbean during the next few days.