Flooding hits Jamaica and Haiti as Hurricane Matthew approaches

Heavy rains from the outer bands of Hurricane Matthew have drenched Jamaica and Haiti, flooding streets and sending many people to emergency shelters as the category 4 storm approached the two countries. Two deaths were reported in Haiti, bringing the total for the storm to at least four.

Matthew had sustained winds of 220kph as it moved north, up from 210kph earlier in the day. The center was expected to pass just east of Jamaica and near or over the south-western tip of Haiti early Tuesday before heading to eastern Cuba, the US National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

“We are looking at a dangerous hurricane that is heading into the vicinity of western Haiti and eastern Cuba,” said Richard Pasch, a senior hurricane specialist with the center. “People who are impacted by things like flooding and mudslides hopefully would get out and relocate because that’s where we have seen loss of life in the past.”

Already, late on Monday, the outer bands of the cyclone reached the area, flooding dozens of houses in the town of Les Anglais when the ocean rose, the local mayor said. In the town of Les Cayes on the southern coast, the wind bent trees and the power went out.

"We have gusts of wind hitting the whole area and the people have fled to a shelter," said Les Anglais mayor Jean-Claude Despierre. In Tiburon, another town nearby, the mayor said people who had been reluctant to leave their homes also fled when the sea rose.

The storm is forecast to spread hurricane force winds and up to three feet of rain across denuded hills prone to flash floods and mudslides, threatening villages as well as shanty towns in the capital Port-au-Prince.