Maria would be the most powerful hurricane to hit Puerto Rico in 85 years, since a Category 4 storm swept the US island territory in 1932, Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen said. The last major hurricane to strike Puerto Rico directly was Georges, which made landfall there as a Category 3 storm, he said. Boats remain anchored in a wharf as Hurricane Maria approaches in Guadeloupe island, France, September 18, 2017. The territory's two other main islands, St. Thomas and St. John, which lie to the north of St. Croix, sustained widespread heavy damage from Irma. Puerto Rico, meanwhile, opened shelters and began to dismantle construction cranes that could be vulnerable to Maria's high winds.

Source: India Today September 19, 2017 00:58 UTC