"Hurricane Nicole plowed directly into Bermuda on Thursday, causing widespread damage and knocking out power to most homes and businesses while apparently sparing the tiny Atlantic island chain any severe injuries or fatalities, government officials said.

Nicole, the strongest hurricane to sweep the subtropical British territory in more than a decade, made landfall before noon, packing sustained winds of up to 120 miles per hour (195 kph) and ranking as a fierce Category 3 storm on the five-level Saffir-Simpson scale, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami.

By then the low-lying archipelago, occupying just 21 square miles (54 sq km) and home to more than 65,000 people, had been lashed for hours with torrential rain, hurricane-force winds and pounding surf."

Sam Strangeways reports for Reuters October 13, 2016. [2]