Bermudians prepare for 1st hurricane of the season

Businesses remained open in Bermuda's capital Hamilton on Thursday afternoon, as Hurricane Earl made a steady crawl towards the Caribbean Island.

The Bermuda Broadcasting corporation reported streets were quiet at lunchtime, with many shoppers moving quickly to avoid the bad weather.

Hurricane Earl churned through open waters in the Atlantic Ocean and was forecast to pass just southeast of Bermuda on Thursday night as a major Category 3 storm.

The island's national security minister, Michael Weeks, told reporters that public services and government offices would keep operating but warned residents to brace for tropical storm conditions.

Weeks also warned of flooding in low-lying areas and noted that officials opened a government shelter. Earl was centered about 140 miles south of Bermuda late Thursday afternoon.

It had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph and it was moving north-northeast at 16 mph.