Bermuda businesses with branches in the Cayman Islands were yesterday preparing for a potential direct hit from Tropical Storm Gustav this weekend — and one has already pulled out staff.

Butterfield Bank closed down its branches there and relocated eight of its key staff, including IT, fund services and treasury members, from the Caymans to Bermuda in advance of Gustav's arrival.

Meanwhile the Igility Group, which has operations in the Caymans, having recently formed CDS Agencies Ltd. there, is also bracing itself for the storm impacting its business.

LOM is continuing to monitor the situation, but does not expect any disruption to its Caymans operation. A spokesman for Butterfield Bank said the bank's branches in Grand Cayman would be closed today, as the storm is projected to hit this evening. The branches will reopen on Monday morning.

Butterfield said key personnel from its fund services and investments departments were on site in the Caymans as a precautionary measure to enable business continuity, while IT, fund services and treasury operatives had come the other way to Bermuda for the duration of the storm.

Aaron Smith, president of the Igility Group, said he was busy sending out disaster recovery instructions to his location manager in the Caymans yesterday.

"We are doing some general things and readying particular IT disaster recovery plans," he said.

"Our sister offices in Jamaica are already experiencing some challenges."

LOM said investment advisers in Bermuda and the Bahamas would be on hand to deal with client inquiries, should conditions in the Caymans get worse. Its employees would be evacuated to one of its sister offices in Bermuda, the Bahamas or London.

LOM Securities (Cayman) Ltd. general manager David McNay said: "Our employees' safety is our main concern and we will continue to make sure they and their families are safe throughout the pending storm.

"Clients are urged to check our website for office updates and to obtain contact information for our other offices."

Gustav hit Jamaica with near hurricane-force winds and torrential rain yesterday on a path toward western Cuba that could take it to the Gulf of Mexico oil fields as a strong hurricane next week.