Sunday, August 23, 2009 MIAMI: Hurricane Bill, the first of the Atlantic storm season, barreled past Bermuda and churned toward the US and Canadian east coasts Saturday, sparking fears of life-threatening rip currents. Packing winds of 100 miles (160 kilometers) an hour, with higher gusts, the storm was set to head close to the upscale island resort of Martha's Vineyard, where US President Barack Obama and his family are heading for vacation Sunday. The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned Saturday "large swells generated by Hurricane Bill are still affecting the Bahamas and Bermuda and the southeast coast of the United States. "Large swells will begin to affect much of the remainder of the US east coast and the Atlantic maritimes of Canada later today and Sunday. These swells will likely cause extremely dangerous surf and life-threatening rip currents," it warned. Bill is a Category Two hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, meaning the storm threatens to cause widespread damage but does not carry the same potential to destroy homes as a Category Three storm. In Canada, authorities issued a tropical storm warnings for much of Nova Scotia's coast, while a hurricane watch was in effect for some far parts of the province. In the Dominican Republic, on the island of Hispaniola, authorities reported waves up to 10 feet (three meters) due to Bill's passage. Bermuda shut down its main airport overnight Friday to Saturday as the tourist destination bunkered down. But Bermuda avoided a direct hit from Bill which neared Massachusetts in time for the Obamas' arrival. Yacht owners battened down the hatches at Martha's Vineyard, a popular resort for the wealthy where the US first family was due to spend a week unwinding for the first time since Obama's inauguration in January.
Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in
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