Hurricane Charley swept past Jamaica on 11 August 2004, drenching the island with heavy rain but causing only minor damage and no injuries. Businesses closed early and streets were deserted, though emergency shelters went unused as the storm's strongest winds stayed clear of the island. Both international airports were expected to reopen by Wednesday evening.
The storm's eye was tracking west-northwest at 28 kilometers per hour, placing it roughly 400 kilometers southeast of Grand Cayman. The National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning for the Caymans; forecaster Lixion Avila said the center would pass "near or over the Cayman Islands on Thursday." A hurricane watch was in effect for the Florida Keys as well, with Charley sustaining winds of 120 kilometers per hour.
In Cuba, authorities evacuated more than 25,000 people from the western Pinar del Rio province and relocated 1,300 tourists from the island of Cayo Largo ahead of a hurricane watch there.
Tropical Storm Bonnie, meanwhile, was advancing northeast through the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida's Panhandle, with landfall expected Thursday morning. ChevronTexaco evacuated 630 workers from 15 platforms and two drilling rigs in the central and eastern Gulf, shutting in about 67,500 barrels of daily oil output in the process.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in August 2004, in its own words.