An estimated 14 million people across the Caribbean, including Jamaica (population of 2.7 million), Cayman Islands (43,000), and Cuba (11 million), are bracing for the impact of Hurricane Ivan as it tracks towards the Florida peninsula, the Census Bureau said today.

     Hurricane Ivan, the fifth hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic season is currently off the coast of Jamaica with an expected path that takes the storm over Cayman Islands and Cuba within the next 24-36 hours. According to the National Hurricane Center at 2:00 p.m. EDT, Ivan packed maximum sustained winds of about 145 MPH, making it a strong Category 4 hurricane. Hurricane-force winds extend 60 miles from the center of the storm, with tropical storm force winds extending outward 175 miles.

Note: The above calculations are based on projections of the storm’s path from the National Hurricane Center, a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service, and estimates from Census Bureau’s International Data Base as of 4-30-2004. These data do not present a full picture of the seasonal population increases of coastal or other tourist areas.