Puerto Rico deployed thousands of federal agents on Tuesday, as Tropical Storm Dorian threatened to lash the Caribbean island.
US forecasters warned Dorian could reach hurricane strength by the time it reaches the US territory on Wednesday, two years after the deadly Hurricane Maria ravaged the island.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said about 3,000 agents had been deployed and were “ready to respond.”
The US National Hurricane Center said it had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph) and was forecast to strengthen during the next 48 hours before passing south of Puerto Rico as it moves west-northwest at 13 mph (20 kph).
“Wow! Yet another big storm heading to Puerto Rico. Will it ever end?” tweeted US President Donald Trump, who has previously demonstrated annoyance with the massive emergency bill resulting from hurricane damage in the unincorporated US territory.
Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced signed an executive order on Monday declaring a state of emergency and urged those living under an unsafe roof to stay in one of the island’s 360 shelters if needed.
Landslides expected
Dorian already caused power outages and downed trees in Barbados and St. Lucia as it traveled through the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. A still-uncertain long-term forecast showed the storm near Florida over the weekend.
Government officials on the island warned of possible landslides and flash flooding.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Looming threat
Ahead of the storm, residents in Louisiana and its largest city, New Orleans, hunkered down in preparation for rising waters brought by Barry. Memories of deadly Hurricane Katrina in 2005 were likely present in their minds. The low-lying coastal area of the state is particularly prone to flooding and much of it has already been lost through erosion.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Evasive maneuvers
A delivery truck used the sidewalk to get around cars stalled on the flooded streets of New Orleans. Compounding concerns, on Saturday the National Weather Service warned of extreme weather capable of producing tornadoes that was approaching St. Bernard Parish and Plaquemines Parish, to the west of the Crescent City, as New Orleans is affectionately referred to.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Boarding up for the possible deluge
Since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city in 2005, work has been underway on a multibillion-dollar hurricane-protection system. Residents are hoping that, though incomplete, it could prevent the worst damage. But some aren’t taking any chances.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Moving in steadily
Barry grew in the Gulf of Mexico over a few days. The main force of the storm brushed the western edge of New Orleans, narrowly missing a direct hit. But Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the expected downpours could still be too much for the pumps designed to free streets of excess water. Barry was briefly classified as a hurricane when sustained winds hit 119 kph (74 mph).
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Sandbags as defense
Here, the gate of the US Customs House in New Orleans is seen sandbagged in the hope of stemming the surge. The Mississippi River, which flows through the city, is forecast to rise to as high as 5.2 meters (17.1 feet) on Saturday — the highest level since 1950, and close to the top of the city’s levees.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
Worst to come
This street in New Orleans’ Garden District suffered flooding days before the actual storm arrived. Some residents parked their cars on raised median strips hoping to protect them from flood damage. People were advised to store at least three days of supplies. Thirty thousand people had lost power in Southern Louisiana by early Saturday.
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US state of Louisiana braces for first hurricane of the season
An unforgotten tragedy
Hurricane Katrina, which hit New Orleans in 2005, caused catastrophic flooding and was blamed for as many as 1,800 deaths in Louisiana and other states. Some areas, like this, still showed the damage half a year on from the disaster.
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Rebuilding after Maria
Puerto Rico’s transportation secretary acknowledged that crews are still rebuilding roads damaged or blocked by Maria. He said more than 1,000 remain blocked by that storm’s landslides.
The death toll in the months after Hurricane Maria was raised from 64 to 2,975 by the island’s governor. Harvard researchers have put the death toll from Maria at 4,645. The storm caused more than $90 billion in damage.
Read more: Study suggests Hurricane Maria killed more than 4,600 in Puerto Rico
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kw/aw (AP, AFP)
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
Only tears of sand remain
Earth observation satellites such as the European Space Agency’s Proba-V collect daily images that allow for the tracking of environmental changes over time. The images above – taken in April 2014, July 2015 and January 2016 (left to right) – offer crystal-clear insight into the gradual evaporation of Lake Poopo, once Bolivia’s second largest lake – due at least in part to climate change.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
The beast has awoken
No matter how long volcanoes sleep, they’re always in a bad mood when they wake up. The International Space Station was passing overhead when the Sarychev volcano, located in the Kuril Islands of Russia, erupted in 2009. Astronauts were able to snap a picture through a hole in the clouds. From dense ash to clouds of condensed water, virtually all natural phenomena can be examined from outer space.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
Don’t play with fire
Every year, wildfires devastate the landscape – and ecology – in numerous countries around the world. Too often, these are caused by humans. This was also the case in Indonesia, where farmers burned peat rainforest areas for agriculture. On the island of Borneo and Sumatra, satellites detected fire hot spots in September 2015, and the plume of grey smoke that triggered air quality alerts.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
German kids misbehaved
In Germany, parents warn their children that if they don’t finish their meals, it’s going to rain. And indeed, in 2013 it rained, so much that some of central Europe’s major rivers overflowed their banks. As shown in this image from 2013, the Elbe burst its banks following unprecedented rainfall. In the photo, muddy water covers the area around Wittenberg, in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
At the eye of the hurricane
A strong storm can cause irreparable damage through intense winds and storm surges from the sea. Space-based information is crucial in following development of such storms: intensity, the direction it’s moving, wind speed … in the eastern Pacific Ocean near Mexico, this satellite image helped determine how tropical storm Sandra reached winds of 160 kilometers per hour by November 25, 2015.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
Melting away from under us
Satellites also play a key role in monitoring climate change and, inevitably, the process of melting ice. From space, scientists were able to document how several glaciers around the globe have receded – as well as the subsequent rise in sea level. This photograph, taken from the International Space Station, shows the retreat of the Upsala glacier in Argentine Patagonia from 2002 to 2013.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
Hold your breath!
Dust often covers remote deserts – however, in September 2015, satellites offered this impressive view of Middle East areas enveloped by a dust storm, or haboob, affecting large populated regions. What satellites can observe from space supports air quality sensors on the ground to understand patterns on how the storms start and develop. These findings can improve forecasting methods.
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Natural disasters as seen from outer space
‘Naked mountain’
These are the words NASA used to describe the lack of snow on California’s Mount Shasta, a crucial source of water for the region. Images documenting drought over the past years have consistently been showing brown mountains that should be white, and bare earth where people seek water. As ice melts, drought grows.
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