Hurricane Gustav downgraded to category three

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

MIAMI (AFP) — Hurricane Gustav was downgraded early Sunday to a category three storm after it crossed Cuba and moved into the Gulf of Mexico, the US government's National Hurricane Center announced.

"Maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 125 miles (205 kilometers) per hour with higher gusts," the center said in its latest advisory. "Gustav is a category three hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale."

But the center warned Gustav could regain category four strength by the end of the day Sunday.

The hurricane hit western Cuba Saturday, tearing off roofs, flattening buildings and plunging communities into darkness.

Earlier, it left at least 81 people dead in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica.

© 2008 AFP