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SNIPPET: "The Interior Ministry says Spanish police have arrested a Cuban man suspected of belonging to al-Qaida. A ministry statement says the man was detained Monday on the Mediterranean Island of Mallorca."

Tropical Storm Ernesto is nearing landfall at Cape Fear NC, with 70 mph winds, pressure 988 mb, and potential rainfall of 5-15 inches in some areas. Flash floods are a real and significant threat. Flash floods were being reported in some coastal cities by midafternoon. Virginia's governor declared a state of emergency and hundreds of National Guardsmen were activated there and in the Carolinas. State ferry service from Ocracoke to Cedar Island on the mainland was canceled as a precaution. Campgrounds in the area were closed. Public Advisories Updated every three hours. Tropical Storm Discussion Updated every six hours North...

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

Ernesto is poised to emerge into Atlantic waters after feebly creeping along the Florida peninsula. Media pundits with tremulous cameras dotted Florida's extensive coastline for the past 24 hours, showing video of children playing in the sand, dark skies, and occasional rain. Tropical Storm Warnings are in effect from Sebastian Inlet Florida to Cape Lookout North Carolina, as Ernesto moves north at 15mph. The storm's intensity and forecast track has puzzled forecasters for several days. N.C. Governor Mike Easley and S.C. Governor Mark Sanford activated the National Guard today in their respective states, as the forecast track indicated Ernesto may...

KEY LARGO, Fla. (Aug. 30) - Floridians checking for damage from Tropical Storm Ernesto on Wednesday didn't find much, as the weakening storm moved north across the state without much punch. Ernesto surprised forecasters by failing to strengthen Tuesday before reaching the southern tip of the state, where it delivered drenching rain but none of the heavy winds or damage that had been feared. And even rains weren't that bad -- about 2 inches had fallen in Fort Lauderdale as of early Wednesday. Phil Brooks, 67, of West Palm Beach, sat with his wife, Priscilla, on a bench along the...

The National Hurricane Center has discontinued hurricane watches for all of Florida as of 8 p.m. Tuesday night. A tropical storm warning remains in effect from Englewood on Florida's west coast southward to Altahama Sound in Georgia. This area includes all of the Florida Keys and Lake Okeechobee. A tropical storm warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected in the area in about 12 to 24 hours. A tropical storm watch is in effect for the area north of Englewood to Tarpon Springs....

"The 2006 hurricane season arrives with the storm clouds of gale force reporting gathering on the horizon."

Tropical Storm Ernesto strengthened slightly overnight in the warm waters north of Cuba after its circulation was seriously hampered by extended interaction with land yesterday. Ernesto is moving northwest at 14 mph toward South Florida. Tropical Storm Warnings and Hurricane Watches are in effect across the Florida Peninsula and Keys from New Smyrna Beach to Bonita Beach. Landfall is currently anticipated by 2 AM Wednesday. Rainfall totals of 5 to 10 inches are possible over portions of eastern and southern Florida and the Keys through Wednesday...with isolated amounts up to 15 inches possible over southeastern Florida. Long lines for gasoline...

Florida Governor Jeb Bush ordered a state of emergency in advance of Ernesto's anticipated Florida landfall as a hurricane. During his press briefing, Governor Bush emphasized the need to, "Have your family plan in place. Be prepared to be on your own for 72 hours. I know it sounds like a broken record." Jeb then repeated his message in Spanish. All of the South Florida peninsula and Keys are under a hurricane watch, and portions of the watch areas may be upgraded to hurricane warnings later today. NASA is moving Space Shuttle Atlantis from the launch pad back to its...

The U.S. still isn't ready for another catastrophe such as last year's Hurricane Katrina, Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said Saturday. "Unfortunately our nation in many ways remains unprepared for major disasters, whether they be hurricanes, earthquakes or terrorist attacks," Landrieu said in the Democratic Party's weekly radio address. "Too often federal agencies are slow to move and encumbered by red tape." The Federal Emergency Management Agency is "a shell" of what it was six years ago, "stripped of authority and denied resources," and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "has failed us," she said. "Much of the destruction...

KEY WEST, Fla. - Visitors were ordered to leave the Florida Keys on Sunday because of the possibility that Hurricane Ernesto could threaten the island chain, emergency officials said. The Monroe County Emergency Management office told tourists with immediate plans to travel to the Keys to postpone their trips and ordered those already in the island chain to leave. All travel trailers and recreational vehicles also were ordered off the islands immediately.

Breaking on Fox right now. "The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm could grow by Thursday into a hurricane as strong as Katrina, which struck the city a year ago Tuesday." (Story released earlier, can't find current update)

Feds Say New Orleans Is Storm-Ready Sunday August 27, 2006 6:46 PM By JOHN HEILPRIN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal emergency officials claim New Orleans levee system is ready for another major hurricane, despite the less-optimistic views of other political leaders and engineers. ``I think we're in good shape,'' Don Powell, the Bush administration's coordinator of Gulf Coast rebuilding, said Sunday. ``There's no question in my mind, we're ready.'' The levees failed after Hurricane Katrina, a Category 4 storm, roared ashore a year ago, flooding the city of New Orleans. The levees were built to withstand a Category...

BILOXI - While New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin continues to get criticized for his actions and inactions before, during and after Hurricane Katrina, Biloxi Mayor A.J. Holloway has been a media darling. It seems that Holloway, 63, has made all of the right moves before, during and after the big storm. Despite that fact that many Biloxi neighborhoods were hit just as hard as Waveland and Bay St. Louis, Holloway's keen preparation and a little luck helped him and his city get back into the fight more quickly than most. “I put our success to the people of Biloxi,” Holloway...

(AP) NEW ORLEANS -- The head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conceded Saturday that despite aggressive efforts to repair the levee system in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, it was unclear whether the it could hold up to a sizable hurricane this year. Lt. General Carl Strock, the commander of the Corps, said the agency was carefully tracking Tropical Storm Ernesto, which was spinning in the Caribbean and projected to reach hurricane strength by Tuesday. He was confident the Corps had done all it could to repair and reinforce 220 miles of levee walls, but he conceded he...

Ernesto is rapidly intensifying to near hurricane strength, with heavy rains and flooding possible over much of Hispaniola. Rainfall amounts of 6 to 12 inches...with possible isolated amounts of up to 20 inches...are expected over Haiti and the Dominican Republic. These rains could cause life-threatening flash floods and mud slides. A Tropical Storm Warning and a Hurricane Watch remain in effect for Jamaica. A Hurricane Watch remains in effect for the Cayman Islands. A tropical storm watch may be required for portions of the Florida Keys later today. Public Advisories Updated every three hours. Tropical Storm Discussion Updated every six...

The Department of Homeland Security and FEMA have called a 3:00 p.m.briefing on tropical storm ERNESTO. WWL will broadcast the event LIVE on the Big 870, WWL 105.3 Fm, and WWL.com.

Hurricane Ernesto is coming!