Tropical storm Ida throws life out of gear

Managua: Tropical storm Ida uprooted trees, knocked down power lines and forced the evacuation of 300 people on Nicaragua's Corn Island after forming on Wednesday and quickly gaining strength in the southwestern Caribbean.

The storm was threatening to become a hurricane as it made a landfall in Nicaragua early yesterday morning.

Heavy rains and winds already pounded the popular resort of Corn Island, knocking down trees, electrical lines and telephone poles. Much of the island had lost and phone service, said Lt. Col. Reinaldo Carrion, the civil defence chief in Bluefields, the city nearest to the island.

Some 300 people were evacuated from poorly constructed, mostly wooden homes, Carrion said. They spent the night in offices of the port authority, the navy and some hotels.

"Fixed telephone lines are out, and cell phone and radio communication is difficult, so we don't have a lot of information," he told The Associated Press.

Ton Bos, owner of the Paraiso Beach Hotel on Corn Island, said winds and rain were heavy, but he had seen worse.

"There is a lot of rain, a lot of wind and some trees are coming down, but it's not a catastrophe," Bos told AP by cellular phone. "I've been here four years and it's been worse than this."

"I'll sleep very well tonight," he said.

Ida's maximum sustained winds were at 100 kilometres per hour late on Wednesday, according to the US National Hurricane Center in Miami. The centre said further strengthening was expected and the storm could become a hurricane.