Although summer is clearly over, as proven by the recent snow storm that has hit South Dakota with surprising strength, the hurricane season has not reached its end. The most impressive tropical storms and hurricanes this year have undoubtedly been Ike, Kyle, Laura and last but not least, Paloma.

The United States have been very wary of hurricanes in the last couple of years, after an underestimated tropical storm named Katrina devastated the southern states, probably exceeding the last devastating hurricane, Rita. It was just another proof – as if humanity needed more – that underestimating the force of nature has disastrous consequences. It is thus easy to understand why the government has become so overprotective, even with paranoid tendencies, when it comes to natural threats of such magnitude as hurricanes.

Today, a hurricane warning was posted for the Cayman Islands and Cuba, following a growth in strength of Hurricane Paloma. The hurricane strengthened around the Caribbean, which prompted the warning to be issued for the area. The United States National Hurricane Center, located in Miami, categorized Paloma as a Category 1 storm. Paloma has so far sustained winds that barely exceeded 80 mph, but it is thought that the hurricane may reach wind speeds of over 110 mph, as soon as Saturday. Currently the storm is located 110 miles S-E of Grand Cayman and 250 miles from Jamaica.

The hurricane is condensed, and its hurricane winds reach outward up to only 15 miles from the storm’s center. Its storm winds, however, reach out to 70 miles from the center.

Local authorities from Jamaica and Cuba were advised to keep an eye on the storm.

Cuba was struck by two powerful hurricanes, Gustav and Ike, within just seven days between August and September. The island was devastated, with an estimated 9 billion dollars in damages.  Should Paloma make landfall on Cuba, it would be the fifth storm to hit the island this season.  Paloma is the 16th storm in the current season - set to end November 30 - in the Atlantic Ocean.