Hurricane traps Thornton Heath family (From Sutton Guardian)

Hurricane traps Thornton Heath family

2:25pm Monday 20th August 2007

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A Thornton Heath couple have been left trapped in Jamaica just hours before the island is hit by a severe hurricane.

Police worker Danny Thompson, his wife Liz and their 10-year-old daughter Vicky had been holidaying on the Caribbean island and had hoped to leave before Hurricane Dean hit.

But airlines were forced to cancel flights forcing the family to leave their El Greco resort hotel in Montego Bay to seek refuge with friends living on the island.

Mr Thompson, 39, told news agencies: "Everyone is saying it will be worse than the result of Hurricane Gilbert which devastated the island.

"We went to the supermarket yesterday and it was empty. People had stripped it of the basic necessities. People are buying plywood to batten down their houses and cutting down trees if they can't get any. People are also buying bricks to hold the roof of their houses down."

The hurricane is expected to bring with it winds of 145mph, 20 inches of rain and storms.

Around 5,000 British tourists are believed to be taking refuge ahead of the storm.

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