Hurricane Irene kills 5, Miami area flooded, North Carolina expecting siege again... 10/16/99

South Florida authorities blamed Hurricane Irene for five deaths early Saturday as the storm dumped heavy rains on the region and left 1.4 million people without power.

At 8 a.m. EDT, Irene was a minimal hurricane with winds of 75 mph (120 km/h). It was centered about 75 miles east of Mebourne, Florida, moving north at 10 mph (16 km/h). The storm was expected to weaken as it moved up the Atlantic coast Saturday, but a tropical storm warning extended from Jupiter Inlet, Florida, to Edisto Beach, South Carolina.

Though a relatively weak and sluggish storm, Irene drenched Florida late Friday, flooding the streets of Miami and stalling cars. Irene packed winds of only 75 mph when it hit land early Friday, but it left 18 inches of rain as it passed Miami.

n Broward County, north of Miami, five pedestrians were electrocuted by downed power lines. Three teen-agers and a woman believed to be about 50 years old were killed in a suburban neighborhood in Weston, near Fort Lauderdale. Another child, aged 12 or 13, was electrocuted outside a convenience store in nearby Cooper City by a downed line.

"We have a significant amount of power lines down in Broward County. We really need people to stay inside," said Todd LeDuc, a spokesman for Broward County Fire and Rescue. Another four people died when the storm lashed Cuba before moving north toward the Keys.

The storm has knocked down more than 1,600 power lines already. About 700,000 homes and businesses were without power, a figure that officials said would only worsen as the storm lumbers across the region. "This is a real good night to just stay indoors," said Max Mayfield, of the National Hurricane Center. "Tomorrow is going to be a much better day, but first we must get through tonight." Blinding sheets of horizontal rain pounded Miami along with 80 mph wind gusts, toppling trees, snapping power lines and turning streets into knee-deep waterways. The majority of flights out of Miami International Airport were canceled, while other flights were canceled at the Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach airports.

Forecasters, meanwhile, warned that Irene was on a path that could bring more misery to flood-ravaged North Carolina. The National Weather Service predicted the storm would move into the Atlantic, skirting Georgia and the Carolinas, and warned both inland and coastal residents to be prepared for more flooding.