Bermuda Ripped by Hurricane : Damage in Millions as Unexpected Storm Pounces on Island

Born-again hurricane Emily gained unexpected strength and speed today and pounced on the island resort of Bermuda with 80-m.p.h. winds, ripping roofs off luxury hotels, slamming a cruise ship into a pier and causing millions of dollars in damage.

“It’s absolute bedlam,” government spokesman Bryan Darby said as the first damage reports were coming in.

Hundreds of houses and commercial buildings lost their roofs, while the local television station and six radio stations were knocked out for a time.

No deaths were reported and there were only a few injuries--cuts and bruises from flying debris.

The New York-based cruise ship Atlantic, carrying 825 passengers, broke its moorings at Hamilton docks and smashed into a wall repeatedly before it was brought under control.

Many hotels, particularly along the South Shore, where Bermuda’s famous beaches are located, were badly damaged.

One, the Mermaid Beach Club, was reported to have taken a direct hit from a water spout in the middle of the first hurricane to hit Bermuda directly since Arlene in 1963.

Darby said the roof blew off two wards of St. Brendan Hospital, a mental hospital in Hamilton. He said patients were transferred to other wards and there were no injuries.

Power Restored

Power was restored in the capital by midday, although it was expected to remain out until Saturday in outlying areas and the island’s main airport was closed until then.

Emily had lost strength in the mountains of the Dominican Republic, where it killed three people, and it was downgraded to a tropical storm Thursday.

“We were forecasting a strong tropical storm for later today or early this evening,” said forecaster Bob Case at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. “Instead we got a Category 2 hurricane that hit first thing this morning. This could happen any time, any place, anywhere during any season.”

“If we had known” there was a threat to Bermuda, “we would have forecast it,” Case said.

By midday the winds were calm and the sun was shining in Hamilton and the island was recovering quickly.

The center of Emily was located near latitude 34.5 north, longitude 61.5 west, 235 miles northeast of Bermuda. It was barreling along in a northeasterly direction at 45 m.p.h., its highest winds clocked at 95 m.p.h.

“It’s going to die fairly quickly,” Case said, “mainly because it is moving at 45 m.p.h. There will be a trend for it to go over colder waters and decrease. It will be just a typical extratropical Atlantic storm 48 hours from now.”