Dean Pounds Jamaica, Heads for Mexico

Aug. 20, 2007 — -- From Kingston to Montego Bay, it was a harrowing night in the Caribbean, as Hurricane Dean tore a path of destruction through Jamaica.

The Category 4 storm, packing winds of more than 150 mph, has already killed at least eight people and caused more than a quarter of a billion dollars' worth of damage, and it's far from over.

The storm has hammered Jamaica and is taking aim at Mexico, sending thousands of tourists scrambling for the airport. It is expected to pass just south of the Cayman Islands today.

Before that, Dean's wind caused heavy damage to the Dominican Republic and destroyed Martinique's banana crop.

In Kingston, Jamaica, the deluge of rain has not let up for 24 hours. Dean is expected to dump 20 inches of rain on the island.

Rescuers worked around the clock helping people trapped in dangerously flooded areas or caught in the storm without shelter.

Some of those people turned up in Kingston's largest shelter, but many chose to brave the storm at home, despite the warning.

"I still trust God. I trust him to take care of us," said one woman in Kingston. "I'm not going to no shelter. … I'm not scared."

On Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, vacations and honeymoons were ruined as tourists flooded Cancun's airport, struggling to get out ahead of the storm.

Those who have to stay behind, like hotel manager Jorge Herran, are praying the storm is not as bad as 2005's Hurricane Wilma. Many are still rebuilding from that devastating storm.

"We're better prepared. We have more checklists in place, so we are ready," Herran said.

At this point it looks like Mexico is going to get a double dose of Dean. After leaving the Yucatan Peninsula, Dean should cross the Gulf of Mexico and make landfall again, well south of the Texas border.

But hurricanes are unpredictable, especially when they come in contact with land.