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US braces itself for Gustav

29/08/2008

Reports claim that at least 68 people have been killed in the Caribbean as a result of Tropical Storm Gustav.

The storm made landfall over Jamaica yesterday, with meteorologists warning that it could strengthen into a hurricane before it reaches the coast of the US.

Energy companies are fearing the worst with the storm due to hit New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico oil fields in the coming days.

Gustav threatens to the most destructive storm to hit the area since 2005 and today marks the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which led to the death of around 1,800 people in New Orleans.

As a result, oil prices have risen and a state of emergency has been declared in Mississippi, with the governor of Louisiana announcing that residents could be evacuated later today.

On its current trajectory, Gustav will skirt between the Cayman Island and western Cuba before entering the Gulf of Mexico.