Hurricane Irma grew into a powerful Category 4 storm Monday as it approached the northeastern Caribbean and was forecast to begin buffeting the region Tuesday. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 130 mph late Monday afternoon, and the U.S. National Hurricane Center said additional strengthening was expected.
The United States Coast Guard says it has offloaded 573 pounds of marijuana, worth US$1.2 million, that was seized in the Caribbean Sea.On Friday, the Coast Guard said that the drug - offloaded in the US Virgin Islands, follows a recent at sea interdiction off the French Caribbean island of Martinique. Seven suspected smugglers, all Venezuelan nationals, have been turned over to the US Department of Justice for potential prosecution by the US Attorney's Office for the District of the Virgin Islands, the Coast Guard said.