on the line is lena samuels who is on the island of st kitts which is currently directly in the pathpecting the storm to hit? around midnight or any time between midnight. everybody has been preparing for it. we know the winds will be quite strong and we are expecting the sea to get up to the swell of around 20 feet. they are on high alert, as it were. it was due to be the independence day celebrations tomorrow and those have been cancelled until further notice. they were spared the worst of it when it came to hurricane irma? they we re when it came to hurricane irma? they were able, with a great deal of team effort,. they were able, with a great deal of team effort, . they managed were able, with a great deal of team effort,. they managed to get their power back within about 20 minutes after it was lost. they did pretty well. —— 20 — 48 hours. they have requested a mandatory evacuation for that part of the island that received some of the big cruise ships. they are requiring people to leave their homes because they are worried about the sea swell. storm surge shelters and evacuation

we can speak to lena samuels, communications advisor to the country's prime minister.ur. the winds have picked up. you can't really walk around anywhere, because the water is coming on to the interior floors, the water is coming on to the interiorfloors, so it is a case the water is coming on to the interior floors, so it is a case of hunkering down and staying put, which we will have to do for a few hours. do you think the full force of hurricane maria is going to hit you over there? it is meant to be passing by within 30 to a0 miles, so we will definitely get some impact. we have already been feeling it over the last 2a hours. the worst of it is happening now. we are told we should see some relief after about four hours, so between two and three o'clock local time, which is five hours behind uk time. what sort of preparations have people been making? they have been working hard. previously, they were well prepared for hurricane irma. all of the shops we re for hurricane irma. all of the shops were busy and people were buying lots of food and water, making sure they h

we can speak to lena samuels, communications advisor to the country's prime minister.ind and rain has not let up, it started at 10pm, and it has gone on continuously, pummelling all the way through. visibility has dropped to 100 feet and there are reports of power lines down. signals are being severely reduced. people are trying to tough it out. it was meant to move on at 2pm, we are five hours behind you, it has not shifted at all, conditions have got worse, brain is thicker, visibility has decreased. you have not been able to do it where you are. we have been advised not to move out until we have been given the all clear, real concern is that there will be flying debris, andi that there will be flying debris, and i have seen pictures circulated of the stadium, where some of the metalwork has come away. they are advised to stay indoors and batten down the hatches. what aberrations have you been making, and the authorities been making over the last few days to deal with it? people have been advised, when it was a storm watch, to go out... people generally took it very

let's speak now to his communications adviser, lena samuels. good morning to you.nd this hurricane? good morning. well, it has been pretty consistent in the way it has battered the island. the wins have been really quite strong. the rain has not given up. it is only now that we are beginning to feel a little bit of relief with the wins. we know that some of the roads have been damaged. there have been some landslides, and some rocks have been falling. we have powerlines down, but it won't be until dawn arrives, which will be 6am here, probably five hours behind where you are, it is only then that the light will show what the damage has been. and we re show what the damage has been. and were people able to prepare at all? well, i think with hurricane irma, it was a bit of a dress rehearsal. people were able to see much more quickly what they needed to do. the sunday beforehand, people were in the stores, really stocking up on everything they needed, food and water, and they were generally listening to the advice, going indoors, staying indoors, knowing it was not sa