WORLD NEWS/ BERMUDA AWAITS IGOR, KARL SLAMS MEXICO

Residents in Bermuda are braced for a direct hit from Hurricane Igor as it churned toward the Atlantic island as a Category 2 storm. Hurricane Warnings are posted and conditions on the island are expected to deteriorate tonight, ahead of Igor's expected arrival late tomorrow or early Monday. Tropical Storm winds should be felt in Bermuda beginning tonight, and Hurricane force winds coming late tomorrow night. The Hurricane Hunters flew into Hurricane Igor today and found that the inner 23-mile wide eyewall had collapsed. Igor now has a huge 92-mile wide eye, thanks to this eyewall replacement cycle. As is usual in the case in eyewall replacement cycles, the peak winds of the hurricane have decreased, but hurricane force winds are now spread out over a larger area. Though conditions are favorable for intensification, the huge eyewall makes it difficult for the storm to intensify much. Thus forecasters believe that Igor will be a strong Category 2 Hurricane as it moves by Bermuda. Hurricane Igor is currently located 360 miles S of Bermuda and is moving NW at 13mph. Winds are at 100mph, with gusts to 120mph. Dangerous storm surges are forecast for Bermuda along with at least 6 to 9 inches of rain. Elsehwere in the Atlantic, a Tropical Wave off the Coast of Africa has developed a broad surface circulations and could become a Tropical Depression early this coming week. IThe wave, named Invest 94L, is a few hundred miles SW of the Cape Verde Islands and has winds of 30mph. Meanwhile, Hurricane Julia has weakened in the last 24 hours and is now a Tropical Storm. Further weakening is forecast as Julia races into the cooler waters of the Northern Atlantic. The storm is moving N/NW at 19mph, with winds at 50mph and gusts to 65mph. Julia will become Extra Tropical early this coming week and poses no threat to land.

In Mexico, the remnants of what was Hurricane Karl dissipating over the mountains after soaking the south-central portions of the country Helicopters were brought in to rescue scores of people stranded by flooding and hunt for others feared washed away. At least 5 fatalities have been reported. Karl had sustained winds of 115 mph when it made landfall at midday yesterdayay about 10 miles NW of the port city of Veracruz. Heavy damage and flooding is reported in Veracruz state and the town of Cotaxtla. In Cotaxtla, a town of about 5,000 residents, a river jumped its banks and flooded homes up to their rooftops.