Washington -
Hurricane Sandy made landfall in south-eastern Cuba early on Thursday, with winds of 183 kilometres per hour reported in Santiago de Cuba, after leaving two dead in the region.
A woman was swept away and killed on Wednesday in the western Haitian town of Camp Perrin trying to cross a swollen river, authorities were quoted as saying by national media.
In Jamaica, a 74-year-old man died when a landslide caused a boulder to fall on his house outside Kingston, a local news report quoted police as saying Wednesday. The storm also ripped off roofs and uprooted trees in the area.
More than 1 000 people fled to emergency shelters across the Caribbean island nation, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management told the newspaper. More were expected as the rains continued overnight to Thursday, it said.
Sandy triggered hurricane warnings across Jamaica, the eastern provinces of Cuba, and most of the Bahamas, the Miami-based US National Hurricane Centre said.
The weather system was expected to drop to tropical storm strength before hitting the east coast of the US state of Florida, the centre said. - Sapa-dpa