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Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

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Winds of Destruction

The howling winds and the sheets of rain came first. Palm trees pounded by wind and water bent over and touched the ground. Roofs lifted off buildings. Raging waters flooded roads, and 20-foot-high waves sent boats crashing into one another.

Next came the calm weather. A bright sun and clear blue skies revealed the terrible devastation that the storm had left behind. Electric-power lines, trees and pieces of homes lay scattered everywhere like matchsticks.

Last week this scene was played over and over again as Hurricane Georges (Zhorzh) roared through the islands of the Caribbean and headed toward Florida. The hurricane wove a path of destruction as it moved west and north. Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico were hit especially hard.

A Monster Storm
Not an inch of Puerto Rico was spared the storm's fury. As Georges whipped across the island, 110-mile-an-hour winds ripped up power lines and peeled off roofs. "This thing was a monster," said Pedro Juan Morales. His home in the capital of San Juan was badly damaged, but he was luckier than many. The storm left many houses without electricity or running water. Thousands were homeless. Said Governor Pedro Rossello: "Our people have very difficult days to come."

On Friday the storm lashed into Florida. People were told to leave their homes and seek shelter. Said one worried woman in Miami Beach: "When I return, I may not have a home."

Georges was blamed for billions of dollars' worth of damage and for the death of more than 300 people.

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HOW HURRICANES GET STARTED
Caribbean hurricanes form when high storm clouds move over warm tropical waters. Fed by warm water and hot air, a column--the eye--forms in the center. Winds spin counterclockwise around the eye. When the winds reach a speed of 74 miles an hour, the storm is called a hurricane. Storms pick up speed over water and weaken when they hit land.

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