surges as the worst hurricane within living memory ploughed its way towards the Island.

Hurricane Felix, a category three hurricane, was forecast to come within 15 miles of the Island between midnight tonight and 3 a.m. tomorrow.

At 6 p.m. last night, Felix was 290 nautical miles southeast of the Island moving north at eight knots with winds of 96 knots gusting to 120 knots.

It is bigger and potentially more dangerous than Hurricane Emily which wreaked havoc in 1987 causing damage of at least $32 million and left some homes without electricity for weeks.

Today all emergency services are on full alert and airlines watching the situation to see if flights have to be cancelled.

Police officers were out yesterday warning residents facing flooding from enormous waves and people have been busy boarding up homes and businesses.

Last night a spokesman for the Bermuda Weather Service said there was still a possibility that the hurricane could veer away from Bermuda and that the Island could suffer the tail end of a tropical storm.

"It is not moving towards Bermuda, it is moving north. It is not on a direct course, but it is forecast to change and come towards us.'' Later, the Weather Service said satellite photographs showed the hurricane had moved away slightly and that a hurricane warning due to be posted at midnight may not be necessary.

However, people were taking no chances over the weekend as many shops faced huge queues with people stocking up on lights and candles.

Yesterday flights leaving the Island were all full as tourists fled early.

Cruise ships have sailed from the East Coast, but will be more than 24 hours late allowing the storm to blow out.

And the Emergency Measures Organisation met yesterday to ensure all departments were ready to cope with potential disasters.

Hurricane Felix has moved towards Bermuda for the past few days blowing winds up to 115 knots or about 132 m.p.h.

The centre of the eye of the storm is expected to be about 15 miles to the southwest of Bermuda by about 4 a.m. on Tuesday.

The eye's diameter is about 25 miles wide, so the hurricane will be virtually sitting on Bermuda, moving at just eight knots. Hurricane force winds are emanating from a 50-mile radius of the eye and gale force winds from between 250 and 175 miles.

It is estimated that winds will reach up to 40 knots this morning, climbing to about 50 knots by lunchtime and reaching possible hurricane force of 95 knots and gusts of 115 knots tonight and tomorrow morning.

The EMO, set up in the wake of Hurricane Emily, met to discuss plans for the imminent arrival of Felix and to ensure its members were ready to cope with the havoc caused by a hurricane.

Twenty five residents, living in low-lying areas, have been identified as being at risk from storm surge and were visited by the Police yesterday to discuss contingency plans.

Businesses and Government offices will open as normal today and buses will run, depending on circumstances throughout the day.

A statement from the EMO said: "Members of the public are advised that Hurricane Felix is a Category three storm and is bigger and potentially more damaging that Hurricane Emily. Every precaution should be taken.

"Businesses and Government offices will open as usual and the bus service will run, however these are subject to any developments in the speed and intensity of the storm.'' The EMO is due to meet again this morning to review the situation. "We have to be prepared. Anything can happen and we cannot minimise or understate the potential danger,'' a spokeswoman for the EMO said.

Yesterday all the flights out of Bermuda were full, with some taking extra capacity, as tourists cut their holidays short to flee the hurricane.

American Airlines laid on two extra planes to cope with the demand as hundreds of people with tickets for later flights turned up at the airport yesterday hoping to get away.

So far, of the seven airlines operating to Bermuda, only American Airlines has cancelled its flights for today and tomorrow. However, all the others will review the situation this morning.

The US Base diverted some Navy planes to take off base personnel because the normal flights were booked up.

A spokesman for the Civil Aviation Department said last night: "Everyone apart from American Airlines is going to adopt a wait and see attitude.

"We figure by noon the Airport should be experiencing 50 knots, once it gets to 40 knots it will effectively shut us down.'' Yesterday all five regular cruise ships to Bermuda had set sail, however all were keeping to the East Coast of America watching how the situation in Bermuda developed.

It is expected that all will arrive at least 24 hours after their scheduled time. The Queen Elizabeth 2 , which arrived in Bermuda on Satruday with 1,800 passengers, left three hours early yesterday to avoid the storm.

In 1987, Hurricane Emily changed and caught Bermuda sleeping.

"It caught us off-guard, said Mr. Joe Lathan, a carpenter as he boarded up store windows yesterday. "We don't want that to happen again.'' The mood among tourists staying on the Island appeared to be much brighter however.

"I'd be glad to be here in a hurricane,'' said Mrs. Angel Lux, of Quebec.

"It would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.'' As a public service, the Mid-Ocean News hurricane supplement is reprinted in today's newspaper. And see Page 6 for tips on preparing for the storm.