Hector knew the impending hurricane was being taken seriously when a TV crew arrived from CNN on Sunday. Acting Police Commissioner proved ready and willing to update the global audience on Bermuda?s preparations. But Hector hears she had just one small proviso before she was ready for her close-up.

?I?m NOT getting my hair wet,? she instructed the news crew. As they both stuck to their guns ? the cameraman wanting an outside shot complete with gale-force winds and Mrs. Young remaining adamant about her ?do, an unhappy looking Police press officer stepped in to hold an umbrella over his boss ? carefully keeping it out of shot.

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At least Mrs. Young?s sentiments were perfectly understandable, to Mrs. Hector at least. More puzzling was the action of a crew in the immediate run-up to Florence. While everywhere else on the Island windows were being boarded up and hatches battened down, what were the hardy Corporation road crew up to? Carefully painting brand new yellow and white lines outside towers ? completing their handiwork with hundreds of tiny orange cones lest any foolhardy motorist should smudge it.

Fully expecting to wake on Monday to see hundreds of tiny orange cones spread the length and breadth of the Island, Hector was relieved to be informed that the crew returned to reclaim them ? with just hours to spare before the weather closed in. Who made that decision?

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Meanwhile in the sleepy town of St. George, residents barely batted an eyelid at the prospect of a potential weather catastrophe. Perhaps the laid back attitude was a little too laidback. Hector was astounded to be told by one local resident that as of yesterday morning ? hours before the winds reached their peak ? one group of chilled-out American tourists declared that they had no idea there was a hurricane on the way.

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decision to publish yesterday?s newspaper a day early ? thereby informing the hardy souls out on Sunday afternoon of the latest hurricane news ? and maintaining its proud tradition of never missing a publishing day caught one radio broadcaster napping.

, aka De Silver Fox, who did sterling duty broadacasting through the storm on ZBMRadio, refused to believe had published on Sunday.

?You must be mistaken. never publishes on Sunday,?he told a caller.

But another listener called in to reveal had done just that ? and she was lookingat the ?special early edition? as she spoke.