Hurricanes

Tropical Storm Emily became Hurricane Emily packing 75 m.p.h. winds in the Caribbean, and the National Hurricane Center in Miami extended a hurricane watch to the southern coast of Haiti. Emily was considered a minimal hurricane because its sustained winds had barely passed the 74 m.p.h. threshold. It didn't seem likely that the hurricane would hit the United States, said Noel Risnychok, a meteorologist at the hurricane center.

Hurricane Norbert strengthened into a Category 4 storm off Mexico's Pacific coast as it churned on a path expected to take it over the southern half of the Baja California peninsula this weekend. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Norbert was likely to turn northeast over the next two days. Officials across the region were setting up shelters and preparing for possible evacuations. The storm had maximum sustained winds near 135 mph, the hurricane center said. It was expected to reach a relatively unpopulated stretch of coast well north of Cabo San Lucas before dawn Saturday.

Powerful Hurricane Isidore drove tens of thousands from their homes as it raked the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, then veered inland to slam the state capital, Merida. The storm shredded trees, knocked out power, set roofs dancing in the air and prompted the state oil company to evacuate 8,000 workers from drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Yucatan state Gov.

Hurricane Ivo, headed for a possible weekend brush with Baja California's resorts, slowed its forward motion Thursday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The storm, upgraded late Wednesday to a Category 1 hurricane, had sustained winds of about 70 mph, with gusts of 85 mph, Thursday afternoon. It was moving to the north-northwest at about 5 mph. The hurricane center said Ivo was likely to weaken into a tropical storm before hitting land Sunday.

A rare tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were posted for parts of the Maine coast as Hurricane Kyle roared north toward the region. It was Maine's first hurricane watch in 17 years, the National Weather Service said. Two to 4 inches of rain had already fallen along some coastal areas by midday, and the storm was expected to deliver an additional 2 to 4 inches. At 5 p.m. EDT, Kyle was centered about 315 miles west-northwest of Bermuda and 485 miles south of Nantucket, Mass.

Hurricane Isidore swirled across Cuba's sparsely populated western tip with winds of more than 100 mph and entered the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters warned of possible flooding and dangerously large waves along Cuban shores. A tropical storm watch for the lower Florida Keys was discontinued. Mexico issued a tropical storm warning and hurricane watch from Progreso to the Maya coastal ruins of Tulum on the Yucatan Peninsula, including the island of Cozumel.

Still-growing Hurricane Gabrielle was storming westward across the open Atlantic Ocean on Sunday with maximum winds of 115 m.p.h., but it posed no immediate threat to land, National Hurricane Center forecasters said. The hurricane's center was about 800 miles east of the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies.

Hurricane Adrian slammed into El Salvador with 80-mph winds late Thursday, cutting off power and unleashing heavy rains in an area prone to severe flooding. About 14,000 people were evacuated ahead of the storm, the first Pacific hurricane on record to strike El Salvador. The country's National Service for Territorial Studies said the hurricane hit near the port of Acajutla, about 45 miles west of the capital, San Salvador.

Tropical Storm Iris strengthened into a hurricane Saturday, triggering mudslides that killed three people in the Dominican Republic and lashing neighboring Haiti with winds and rains as it threatened to hit Jamaica. Iris is the first hurricane to menace Caribbean islands this season. In the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, on the south coast, heavy rain caused a mudslide Saturday that destroyed a home under construction.

Hurricane Gabrielle stalled in the Atlantic on Saturday, annoying the Northeast coast of the United States with heavy swells, but remaining far from land, officials said. The storm's 90-m.p.h. winds were expected to weaken.