Hurricane Dean, the first of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season, barreled toward the Caribbean early Friday, promising to deliver rain and gusting winds on Haiti, Martinique Guadeloupe and Antigua.
At 0900 GMT, Dean was in the St. Lucia channel between St. Lucia and Martinique.
The Miami-based US National Hurricane Center said in its 0900 GMT report that Dean, a category two storm with winds of 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour, was moving toward the west at near 24 miles (39 kilometers) per hour.
France issued hurricane warnings for Martinique, Guadeloupe and its dependencies, and hurricane warnings were still in effect for Dominica and St. Lucia, said the center.
The prime minister of Jamaica called an emergency meeting of the disaster preparedness committee for Friday to prepare for the hurricane, which could disrupt general elections scheduled for August 27.
