Biggest hurricane in 90 years hits Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN • Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico yesterday as the strongest storm to hit the US territory in nearly 90 years, ripping windows from their fixtures and sending debris hurtling through the streets as it approached the capital, San Juan.

Maria, the second major hurricane to roar through the Caribbean this month, made landfall near Yabucoa, on the south-west coast of the island of 3.4 million people. Thousands were seeking safety in shelters.

The hurricane was on track to pass just north of the north-east coast of the Dominican Republic last night and today, the National Hurricane Centre said.

REUTERS

Spanish police raid Catalan govt offices

MADRID/BARCELONA • Spanish police raided Catalan government offices and arrested officials yesterday to halt a banned referendum on independence, an action the regional president said meant Madrid had effectively taken over his administration.

Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said in a televised address that Catalans should still turn out in force to vote in the Oct 1 referendum on a split from Spain that Madrid has declared illegal.

REUTERS

London Tube blast: Two more arrested

LONDON • Two more men were arrested in the Welsh city of Newport over the recent explosion at a subway station in west London, bringing the total held to five, media reports said.

A 48-year-old and a 30-year-old were detained under the Terrorism Act after a search at an address in Newport in south Wales yesterday.

A home-made bomb went off last Friday during the morning rush hour on a packed train at Parsons Green underground station, engulfing the carriage in flames, although it appeared that the device did not fully explode.

REUTERS