Jeanne kills six in Florida

MELBOURNE, Florida – Hurricane Jeanne tore a fresh path of destruction and despair across storm-ravaged Florida, where the fourth major hurricane in six weeks shut down much of the state and prompted recovery plans on a scale never before seen in the nation.

At least six people died in the storm, which plowed across Florida’s midsection in a virtual rerun for many residents still trying to regroup from Hurricanes Charley, Frances and Ivan, which have criss-crossed the south-eastern United States since mid-August. Florida was the first state to withstand a four-hurricane pounding in one season since Texas in 1886 – a milestone that came with two months remaining in the hurricane season.”Once again we’re facing a hurricane/tropical storm that’s just wreaking havoc wherever it goes,” Federal Emergency Management Agency director Mike Brown told the CBS “The Early Show” yesterday.”We have some people in Florida who have been hit two or three times now by these hurricanes.They have to be miserable right now.”Rocketing debris scattered in earlier storms, Jeanne came ashore around midnight Saturday with 193 km/h winds, striking its first blow in the same area hit three weeks ago by Hurricane Frances.It remained at tropical storm strength with winds of 72 km/h when its centre moved over Georgia yesterday morning, but was expected to weaken into a tropical depression later in the day.It had moved east of the so-called Panhandle region of northwest Florida, where 70 000 homes and businesses remained without power because of Hurricane Ivan less than two weeks ago.”Adversity makes us strong.This dynamic state will return,” Governor Jeb Bush said at the Indian River County emergency operations centre Sunday, where nearly all of the county was without power and residents were told to boil tap water before drinking it to avoid contaminants.- Nampa-APFlorida was the first state to withstand a four-hurricane pounding in one season since Texas in 1886 – a milestone that came with two months remaining in the hurricane season.”Once again we’re facing a hurricane/tropical storm that’s just wreaking havoc wherever it goes,” Federal Emergency Management Agency director Mike Brown told the CBS “The Early Show” yesterday.”We have some people in Florida who have been hit two or three times now by these hurricanes.They have to be miserable right now.”Rocketing debris scattered in earlier storms, Jeanne came ashore around midnight Saturday with 193 km/h winds, striking its first blow in the same area hit three weeks ago by Hurricane Frances.It remained at tropical storm strength with winds of 72 km/h when its centre moved over Georgia yesterday morning, but was expected to weaken into a tropical depression later in the day.It had moved east of the so-called Panhandle region of northwest Florida, where 70 000 homes and businesses remained without power because of Hurricane Ivan less than two weeks ago.”Adversity makes us strong.This dynamic state will return,” Governor Jeb Bush said at the Indian River County emergency operations centre Sunday, where nearly all of the county was without power and residents were told to boil tap water before drinking it to avoid contaminants.- Nampa-AP