Hurricane Paloma hits Cuba, third this season

Miami: Hurricane Paloma with wind speed of 195 km an hour hit the central Cuban province of Camaguey late Saturday, EFE news agency reported.

Cuban weather office said Paloma , the third powerful hurricane this season to lash the Caribbean island, would move Sunday morning toward the Bahamas.

A hurricane advisory was still in force for the Cuban provinces of Ciego de Avila, Camaguey, Las Tunas, Granma and Holguin.

The current Atlantic hurricane season that began June 1 and ends November 30 has seen 16 tropical storms and eight hurricanes including Paloma.

Meteorologists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the US, have forecast that this would be a very active season with the possible formation of 14 to 18 tropical storms, of which seven to 10 could be of hurricane force.