Storm drenches Haiti, drives up oil prices on path toward Gulf

People covered themselves from the rain yesterday as Hurricane Gustav headed into Port-au-Prince, Haiti. One man was killed in a landslide in the mountain town of Benet. (Ariana Cubillos/Associated Press)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Hurricane Gustav weakened to a tropical storm yesterday as it dumped torrential rains on southern Haiti, killing at least one man and threatening crops amid protests over high food prices. Oil prices rose on fears the storm could batter oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico.

Trees toppled as the storm lingered for hours over Haiti's poor, deforested southern peninsula, and water levels were rising in banana, bean, and vegetable fields. One man was killed in a landslide in the mountain town of Benet, civil protection director Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste told Radio Metropole.

"If the rain continues, we'll be flooded," UN food consultant Jean Gardy said from the southeastern town of Marigot.

Hundreds of people in coastal Les Cayes ignored government warnings to seek shelter, instead throwing rocks to protest the high cost of living in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country. Witnesses said UN peacekeepers used tear gas to disperse the crowd.

In April, soaring food prices led to deadly protests and the ouster of the nation's prime minister. It was difficult to ascertain the extent of the damage to the nation's crops yesterday because of Haiti's poor infrastructure and faulty communications.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said late yesterday that Gustav had weakened to a tropical storm with winds near 70 miles per hour but is expected to regain hurricane strength today once it clears Haiti. Forecasters said it could become a Category 2 hurricane with winds topping 96 miles per hour tomorrow as it moves between Cuba and Jamaica.

After Haiti, a strengthening Gustav was projected to sideswipe Cuba's southern coastline all week before entering the central gulf on Sunday. Forecasters were reluctant to predict the storm's path beyond the weekend, the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Thunderstorms associated with Gustav were already bringing downpours to some parts of eastern Cuba late last night. In Houlgin Province, communist officials evacuated residents from low-lying areas and set up shelters and emergency food distribution centers in schools and municipal buildings.

The US military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, had been expecting a direct hit, but later forecasts suggested the fiercest winds and rain will pass offshore. Base spokesman Bruce Lloyd said they were preparing for emergencies in any case.

A powerful storm in the Gulf of Mexico could force shutdowns on the offshore rigs that account for a quarter of US crude production and much of its natural gas. Royal Dutch Shell PLC said it could begin evacuating workers as soon as today.