Jamaican authorities urge people to take cover as Hurricane Dean nears

Jamaicans headed inland and tourists fled the country as Hurricane Dean headed for a direct hit on the island Sunday after a deadly and destructive march across the eastern Caribbean.

Jamaica converted schools, churches and the indoor national sports arena into shelters and authorities urged people to take cover from a storm that could rake the country with winds of 145 mph and dump up to 20 inches of rain.

Dean sparks panic buying

Jamaicans crowded supermarkets and hardware stores yesterday snapping up food, water, flashlights, batteries and other emergency items as powerful Hurricane Dean moved slowly across the central Caribbean with Jamaica firmly in its sight.

‘Jah be praised’

Reggae music’s heart lies in celebration. It’s perfect party music, with its lilting, bouncy rhythm and sun-kissed melodies nursed on the culture of the Caribbean. But if its heart makes even the staunchest wallflower want to dance, reggae’s soul dwells in a deep Rastafarian spirituality that seeks to bring both listener and performer closer to God.

Hurricane Dean affects air, sea travel plans

A nasty category-four hurricane took aim Sunday at some of the most popular vacation destinations in the Caribbean and Mexico. Jamaica and the Cayman Islands were in Hurricane Dean’s direct path, and the Yucatan Peninsula south of Cancun looked like it was next. Airlines, including Northwest, Spirit and Delta, were waiving change penalties on flights to the region this week.

DEAN’S COMING! Jamaica braces for hurricane hit

Deadly and dangerous Hurricane Dean has Jamaica in its firing line and predictions from the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida, are that the storm will hit Jamaica later this evening.

Duty forecaster at the Meteorological Services, Evon Thompson, said yesterday: “The system is on a track towards Jamaica and does not appear to be shifting. All interests in Jamaica need to be at the highest level of preparedness, as it is actually heading in our general direction.”

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Reggae rocker brings his religion onstage

Among many things, Matisyahu is a family man. In fact, the Jewish reggae rocker’s wife and children are on tour with him right now.
“It is a lot of fun to have your family with you, and they really enjoy being out,” said Matisyahu. “My older son loves music . . . and this experience provides kind of an interesting world for him. He gets to see the view from inside.”

Sizzla Kalonji apologizes for ‘St Mary Mi Come From’ incident

Reggae performer Sizzla Kalonji is apologizing on behalf of his fans who assaulted fellow reggae singer Norris Man during the St Mary Mi Come From concert on Independence Day.

Norris Man, who had allegedly verbally disrespected Sizzla’s mother, received several slaps from a group of men.

Jamaica braces for Dean

Hurricane Dean barreled across the eastern Caribbean Saturday and took aim at Hispaniola, Jamaica and Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, with forecasters saying it could turn into a monster Category 5 storm within 72 hours.

With sustained winds near 150 mph, Dean left behind floods, debris and at least three deaths on the islands of St. Lucia, Martinique and Dominica on Friday.

Dean nears Category 5 strength, continues along forecast track

A Hurricane Watch remains in effect for Jamaica as dangerous Hurricane Dean continues to strengthen while heading towards the island. This means that hurricane conditions still pose a possible threat within 36 hours.

At 4:00 a.m. the centre of Hurricane Dean was located near Latitude 15.1 degrees North, Longitude 67.3 degrees West. This is about 390 km (240 miles) south-southwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, or close to 1010 km (630 miles) east-southeast of Morant Point, Jamaica.