US: Hurricane Frances began its trail of destruction across Florida yesterday, moving over central areas of the state.
Forecasters at the US National Hurricane Center in Miami predicted the hurricane would move into the Gulf of Mexico this morning.
They placed much of Florida's north-west Gulf coast under a hurricane alert, warning that Frances could intensify once it entered the Gulf of Mexico.
An early estimate of insured damage from the hurricane - the second to strike the state in three weeks - was between $2 billion and $10 billion, according to Risk Management Solutions, which provides risk assessments for the insurance industry.
The fourth hurricane of the season, Frances is so huge that satellite images showed its effects spread from the Florida Keys to the Georgia coast.
Tropical storm winds were reported in Grand Bahama a day after the hurricane passed through.
The hurricane packed winds of more than 140 miles per hour when it passed over the Bahamas, but weakened before hitting Florida.
Winds in excess of 105 miles per hour were reported as Frances came ashore.
The hurricane caused serious disruption to air travel. Miami International Airport closed for nearly a day.
It may be mid-week before normal service is restored.
Orlando International Airport closed on Friday and officials did not know when it would reopen. Orlando, with its concentration of theme parks, is the top tourist destination in the US.
Wind was expected to do further damage to Florida's citrus crop, already down by an estimated 20 per cent because of Hurricane Charley, which hit the state last month.
The latest hurricane cut through grove land that had not been hit by Charley, and the sustained winds were expected to blow much of the unripe fruit off the trees.
Florida's cruise industry was another casualty, with ships forced to extend voyages as they waited for the all-clear to return to the ports of Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Shortages of petrol were reported in south Florida because tankers could not enter ports and existing supplies could not be delivered to petrol stations due to high winds.
Because the hurricane moved so slowly, Floridians had more time than usual to prepare.
By yesterday, more than 80,000 people were reported to have fled their homes to take refuge in shelters.
Even as Frances battered the state, the season's fifth hurricane, Ivan, was gathering strength in the western Atlantic with a projected trajectory that threatened Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba and possibly South Florida. - (Financial Times)