Hurricane Dean's path of destruction

Journalists and BBC News website readers have been filing updates on what Hurricane Dean has left in its wake.

BELIZE

• Heavy rain and strong winds as Dean made landfall close to Belize border
• Power was cut in most of the country
• Sugarcane fields were flattened in the north
• Belize City Mayor Zenaida Moya urged residents to leave due to the lack of adequate shelters
• Popular tourist destinations were evacuated
• Hospitals in Belize City were evacuated

We have not yet recovered from our previous hurricanes - Iris and Keith. The warnings here were clear and good. The FCO through the British High Commission also put out warnings and offered to help those needing shelter. However, local preparations are hit and miss depending on your level of income. David, Dangriga, Belize

CAYMAN ISLANDS

• The islands escaped largely unscathed as the hurricane passed to the south

CUBA

• 50,000 people were evacuated from south and eastern coastal areas
• All those living in low-lying areas were moved inland as a precaution

DOMINICA

• A landslide crushed a woman and her seven-year-old son as they slept in their home
• At least 150 homes were damaged
• The banana industry was heavily hit

"Although the initial onslaught of Hurricane Dean did some damage to our beautiful island - roofs blown away, trees brought down - it was after it had passed through the Martinique-St Lucia channel that the continuous rain took its toll.

"The cost to our small and fragile economy will be enormous. Yet we consider ourselves blessed, as it could have been so much worse."
Bruce Martins, Roseau, Dominica

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

• A 16-year-old boy was swept out to sea in the capital, Santo Domingo
• Waves surged up to 20ft (6m) high
• Dozens of houses were destroyed in landslides
• Roads were flooded

"Just had some heavy winds and rain, but seems to be passing right now on the north coast."
Gareth Milner, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

Hurricane churns up the Caribbean

GUADELOUPE

• 80% of banana crop was destroyed

HAITI

• Four people were killed, according to UN, and about 150 homes destroyed
• Flooding in coastal towns
• 1,000 people from low-lying areas were evacuated

JAMAICA

• A fifteen-year-old girl was killed by a falling concrete block
• A man of 42 was killed by a flying object outside his house
• A forty-year-old man died when the roof of his house caved in
• A month-long state of emergency has been declared
• Power lines were downed and roofs ripped-off along the southern coast
• Giant trees felled, blocking roads
• The general election, due on 27 August, has been postponed until 3 September

"Hurricane Dean has just bulldozed the place and left. The devastation is horrible but manageable."
Ruth Howard, Kingston, Jamaica

"There are reports that gunmen are trading bullets along sections of Mountain View Road, this as the general elections are scheduled for the 27th of this month. It's really somewhat scary but we are relieved that it is not worse. Ivan and Gilbert seem to have been more devastating."
Charmaine, Jamaica

Hurricane batters Jamaica's south

MARTINIQUE

• A woman in her 80s died of a suspected heart attack as the hurricane passed, while a man died after a fall
• The entire banana crop was wiped out
• The authorities put cost of repairing the island's infrastructure at between US$200m-270m

MEXICO

• Dean made landfall for the second time in a week on Wednesday. It hit the eastern state of Veracruz as a Category Two storm, with winds of up to 100mph (160km/h), but was then downgraded to Category One.
• More than 10,000 people across Veracruz had taken refuge in shelters prior to Dean's arrival
• Oil wells in the Campeche Sound were evacuated as Dean raced across the Gulf of Mexico earlier on Wednesday
• Trees and houses were damaged and 90,000 homes left without power on the Yucatan Peninsula as Dean made landfall as the highest Category Five storm - with winds of 165mph (265km/h) - on Tuesday. Hundreds of homes collapsed in Majahual
• Ancient Mayan archaeological sites in Quintana Roo and Yucatan escaped damage
• Two-thirds of tourists in the Cancun area left ahead of the storm, but the resort was not hit directly
• Police and military were place on alert amid fear of looting
• President Felipe Calderon returned early from talks in Canada to oversee the emergency operation
• Parts of country were expected to be without water or electricity for several days

Hurricane Dean hits Mexico coast

Relief in Cancun

ST LUCIA

• A 62-year-old man drowned while trying to save his cow from a rain-swollen river
• Second person was reported dead in storms
• Dozens of homes had roofs ripped-off, as did the paediatric ward of a hospital, which had been evacuated earlier
• The island's banana crop was entirely wiped out

"On Friday morning about 4.45am I woke up only to notice gusty winds and heavy rainfall. I also noticed thunder and lightning. A few hours later the roofs of houses were ripped off and also electricity poles were uprooted."
Ted Dornelly, Vieux Fort, St.Lucia

"It got very windy and fears were that the roof would come off but we made through. We have just had power restored which is pretty good for the islands, well done St.Lucia!"
Simon & Lily, Mistley, England