Tropical storm heads to US leaving 137 dead in its wake

TROPICAL Storm Hanna roared past the edge of the Bahamas today ahead of a possible hurricane hit on the Carolinas, leaving behind at least 137 dead in Haiti.

Meanwhile Hurricane Ike, a still-more-dangerous Category 4 storm, was advancing from the east.

Hanna blew by the Bahamas, knocking out power to Cat Island and causing minor flooding in other eastern islands, but sparing the Atlantic nation major damage.

The US National Hurricane Centre said Hanna should reach the coast of North or South Carolina by tomorrow, but its sprawling bands of outer winds are likely to hit the US far sooner.

Eighty of the deaths in Haiti occurred in the flooded region of Gonaives and another 22 people died in areas immediately surrounding the port. The remaining 35 deaths were scattered across Haiti.

The storm also was blamed for two deaths in Puerto Rico.

Hanna's heart was about 540 miles south of Wilmington, North Carolina, early today.

Its maximum sustained winds were 65mph but forecasters said it could become a hurricane before hitting the US.