Category Archives: Bermuda

Fierce seas in US north-east as Ernesto regains hurricane strength over Atlantic

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Forecasters warn of life-threatening surf and rip tides: ‘It’s going to be really dangerous out in the water today’

Tropical Storm Ernesto became a hurricane again on Sunday as it churned away from Bermuda and headed further out in the Atlantic, sending powerful swells toward the US east coast, generating rip currents associated with at least one death and prompting many rescues.

The US National Hurricane Center in Miami said Ernesto’s maximum sustained winds were 75mph (120km/h), just barely category 1 strength.

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Hurricane Ernesto pummels Bermuda with 35ft waves and high winds

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Category 1 hurricane described as ‘rare event’ in area as officials warn of severe flooding and storm surges

Hurricane Ernesto walloped Bermuda with winds reaching 85mph (137km/h) and waves exceeding 35ft (10.5 metres) offshore from the small British territory in the Atlantic Ocean, as it made landfall early on Saturday – with officials warning of potentially fatal flooding and storm surges.

The storm arrived as a category 1 hurricane after traveling over the archipelago overnight, a trajectory described as a “rare event” by the Weather Channel. It is uncommon for the eye of tropical cyclones to pass directly over these islands, per the network.

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Hurricane Ernesto bears down on Bermuda amid deadly flood warnings

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Atlantic island territory, which has seen fewer than a dozen hurricanes since 1850, braces for dangerous storm surge

Hurricane Ernesto bore down on Bermuda on Friday as a category 2 storm, threatening the British island territory with strong winds, a dangerous storm surge and potentially deadly flooding.

Ernesto, centered about 95 miles (150km) south-southwest of the archipelago at 8pm Atlantic Standard Time (0000 GMT on Saturday), was producing sustained winds of up to 100mph (155km/h) and had the potential to drop up to 9in (230mm) of rain, the US National Hurricane Center said.

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Hurricane Ernesto aims at Bermuda as it’s forecast to reach category 3

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Storm left hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans without power and water in sweltering heat

Hurricane Ernesto barreled toward Bermuda on Thursday after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico without power or water as sweltering heat enveloped the US territory, raising concerns about people’s health.

A hurricane warning was in effect for Bermuda, with Ernesto expected to pass near or over the island on Saturday.

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Bermuda and Canada brace for Fiona as Puerto Rico counts cost

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At least six municipalities across island have areas cut off by storm which struck as a category 1 hurricane and has since strengthened

Bermuda and the Atlantic provinces of Canada were preparing for a blast from Hurricane Fiona as authorities struggled on Thursday to open roads for people left stranded and without power by the storm in Puerto Rico.

The storm was expected to still be at category 4 force when it passes close to Bermuda overnight and still dangerously potent when it reaches Canada, probably late on Friday, as an extratropical cyclone.

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Bermuda’s ban on same-sex marriage is allowed, UK judges rule

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JCPC overturns decision by lower court that ban was unconstitutional, in setback for LGBTQ rights

British judges have ruled that Bermuda’s ban on same-sex marriage is permitted under its constitution, in a setback for gay rights in the British overseas territory.

The UK’s judicial committee of the privy council (JCPC) – the ultimate court of appeal for Bermuda and dozens of other British overseas territories, dependencies and Commonwealth states – on Monday overturned a decision by Bermuda’s highest court, which ruled the ban to be unconstitutional.

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Microsoft Irish subsidiary paid zero corporate tax on £220bn profit last year

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Microsoft Round Island One is ‘tax resident’ in Bermuda, with no employees except directors

An Irish subsidiary of Microsoft made a profit of $315bn (£222bn) last year but paid no corporation tax, as it is “resident” for tax purposes in Bermuda.

The profit generated by the company, Microsoft Round Island One, is equal to nearly three-quarters of Ireland’s entire gross domestic product (GDP) – even though it has zero employees.

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Forbes drops Bermuda trip for entrepreneurs to escape Covid ‘gloom’

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Invitation for people on magazine’s ‘30 under 30’ list is dropped hours after Guardian inquiry

A place on one of Forbes’s “30 under 30” lists has long been a marker of status and potential for a group the magazine has proclaimed as the US and Canada’s “brashest entrepreneurs”.

In a time of global crisis, they were offered an additional reward this week: a month-long trip to a five star hotel and beach club in Bermuda, “one of the most desirable destinations in the world”, to escape from the “monotony and gloom” of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Google shifted $23bn to tax haven Bermuda in 2017, filing shows

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Firm used Dutch shell company in move known as ‘double Irish, Dutch sandwich’ that cuts its foreign tax bill

Google moved €19.9bn ($22.7bn) through a Dutch shell company to Bermuda in 2017, as part of an arrangement that allows it to reduce its foreign tax bill, according to documents filed at the Dutch chamber of commerce.

The amount channelled through Google Netherlands Holdings BV was about €4bn more than in 2016, the documents, filed on 21 December, showed.

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