The power of Hurricane Ike was felt in Cuba long before it made landfall on Sunday, with storm surges hitting the coast.

The streets of some eastern towns were flooded. More rain, powerful winds and storm waves are expected.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been moved from their homes to shelters as the storm moves along the island.

There are major concerns about what such a powerful hurricane could do to Havana, which has many crumbling colonial buildings.

Hurricane Ike has already left a trail of destruction, hitting the low-lying Caribbean Turks and Caicos islands late on Saturday. The prime minister said 80% of homes on the main islands had been destroyed.

As a Category Four hurricane, it brought a storm surge 13-18 feet (4-5.5 metres) above normal tide levels, enough to flood this street in Providenciales island.

Many visitors and residents left the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos, but those who could not took refuge in emergency shelters.

The main force of Ike passed to the north of Haiti, but it brought more rain to the city of Gonaives, already badly flooded by Tropical Storm Hanna last week.

Storm-weary residents of the city left their neighbourhoods during heavy rain. The UN said 650,000 Haitians have been affected by flooding.