STORM

In her most dramatic role yet Titanic actress Kate Winslet , helped carry Sir Richard Branson's 90-year-old mother to safety when a fire broke out at the British business magnate's multimillion pound luxury Caribbean retreat.

Hurricane Irene, which marks the first hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic season, is expected to hit Bahamas later today and could become a major hurricane on Tuesday, according to National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane Irene is heading towards the U.S. East Coast and is forecast to make a possible landfall in mainland U.S. in Florida, Georgia or California by the end of the week.

Brent crude neared $109 Tuesday as fighting in Libya continued and in anticipation of a fall in U.S. crude stockpiles.

Hurricane Irene hit the island of Hispaniola Monday, with 100 mile per hour winds and severe rain battering the Dominican Republic, but so far missing Haiti.

Hurricane Irene in 2011 is looking to be a fierce one.

As the forecast model matures, Hurricane Irene now appears headed on a path up Florida's east coast, with a possible direct hit on Georgia and the Carolinas. Florida is far from out of the woods, and if the storm stays on track, the state could suffer significant damage from a couple of days of torrential rains and high winds.

Hurricane Irene sustained 80 mph winds as the storm rocked the area just off the northeastern coast of Hispaniola. The National Hurricane Center expected Irene to continue gaining momentum over the next few days but by Thursday, forecasters said that it could be a major Category 3 hurricane with winds up to 115 mph.

As the forecast model matures, Hurricane Irene now appears headed on a path up Florida's east coast with a possible direct hit on Georgia and the Carolinas. Florida is far from out of the woods, and if the storm stays on track, the state could suffer significant damage from a couple of days of torrential rains and high winds

Irene could make U.S. landfall before the weekend

British Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet was among the guests who escaped unhurt from a fire which swept through Richard Branson's Caribbean holiday retreat overnight, the billionaire said on Monday.

The bad news is that Hurricane Irene will probably strike the Florida and or the Southeast Atlantic coast. The good news is, for U.S. motorists - - the Gulf of Mexico and its important oil refinery infrastructure will be spared.

Kate Winslet and her family escaped from a fire at Richard Branson's private island home on Necker Island early Monday morning as lightning from tropical storm Irene set the place ablaze.

A hurricane watch has also been issued for the central Bahamas.

Kate Winslet was one of 20 people who escaped unharmed from a fire that has destroyed Richard Branson's home on the Necker Island in the Caribbean.

Hurricane Irene is gaining strength and heading toward Florida. The storm could hit the U.S. by week's end, possibly as a Category 2 storm or higher, forecasters say. Irene, the first of the 2011 Atlantic season, could become a Category 3 storm by the time it reaches Florida with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or higher.

NASA's satellite captures Irene from space and shows how it grew from a tropical storm to a hurricane.

The path of Hurricane Irene has forced both Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Lines to shuffled the itineraries of their cruise ships.

800,000 electrical customers (half of the island) are without power. Also, almost 120,000 Puerto Ricans have no water service.

Hurricane Irene gained strength Monday morning and is heading toward Florida after pounding Puerto Rico. Heavy rain, flooding and mudslides are possible in the Caribbean before the storm is forecast to track through parts of the Bahamas from late Tuesday night through early Friday morning. Then, the storm is likely to hit Florida, possibly impacting the state with heavy rains and damaging winds for a couple of days.

Irene is a category 1 hurricane.