Floodings, flight cancellations, blown-over motorbikes, drifting cruise ships and thousands of households without power were all among the casualties of yesterday's storm.

Over 70 incidents had been reported - including electrical pole fires and fallen trees - by press time.

Remarkably, emergency services said that no injuries had been reported.

And with its crews stretched to the limit dealing with emergency calls, Belco expects many households to be without power today.

The fire service was also stretched to the maximum - by 9.30 last night they had received 30 calls and all of their crews were out attending to various incidents including a 40-foot pleasure craft which was sinking off Mariners Wharf in St. David's.

Four flights from the United States did not make it to the Island after 40 to 60 knot winds forced them to return shortly after take-off.

"That combined with the wet runway meant that the flights that were meant to arrive turned back," said the airport's general manager Lester Nelson.

The aborted flights were Delta Airlines from Boston, American Airlines from New York, USAIR from Philadelphia and Continental from New Jersey. Also affected was Delta's flight from Atlanta which did not take off.

Harbour Radio reported that the cruise ship Norwegian Majesty started to drift in the harbour after the dock bollard broke free taking part of the dock with it. The ship started to pivot with the stern line still attached and two Government tug boats were despatched to assist. Eventually the ship found its way up alongside Penno's Wharf with the help of the tug boats. Police warned motorists to stay away from the Penno's Wharf area because of hazardous conditions created by the waves.

The Nordic Empress had similar trouble at Kings Wharf, Dockyard. A Government tug boat was dispatched to stand by the ship just in case.

And local pilots helping to navigate the Zenith and the Horizon out of the Island waters had to stay on board the ships when it became too hazardous for them to disembark. They will be coming back to Bermuda by air.

Early in the afternoon Fiesta, a 45-foot sailboat broke its Spit Head, Paget moorings with two people on board who helped manoeuvre the boat off the rocks.

A Police rescue boat also attended. Harbour Radio said there were several incidents involving boats but none of them life-threatening.

Works and Engineering and Belco crews worked tirelessly throughout the afternoon and yesterday night on Island roads, clearing debris and cutting back branches.

Shortly before 8 p.m., the power utility suspended all power restoration efforts to concentrate on emergency situations. At that time there were 30 such calls outstanding and, with 16 circuits off, some 7,500 people without power across the Island.

"We won't resume regular restoration efforts until the weather subsides and it's safe for our crews to work," said Belco spokesperson Robin Sidders.

She added there was a "strong possibility" that some customers would still be out of power this morning. The larger areas would take priority when restoration efforts resumed, she said.

Cable service in some parts of the Island was also affected. Roads across the Island were affected. An uprooted tree lying halfway across Middle Road near the Orange Valley Road junction blocked passage for motorists.

For the Fire Service, most of its calls were for the western and eastern parishes of the Island. The vast majority of calls that kept up to six crews busy at a time throughout the evening were pole fires or brush and tree fires set off by electrical wires.

Between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. officers had dealt with 20 incidents, according to Divisional Officer Melvin Outerbridge. By 9.30 p.m. the number had risen to 30.

A Margarita Lane, Devonshire house was damaged by a tree, said Police. Another house - in St. George's - sustained damage to its windows.

By 9.00 p.m. a total of 74 incidents had been reported, according to Police. Nine of them were marine related, there were 32 electrical pole fires and 31 trees on the roads.

Minister Without Portfolio Randolph Horton said that members of the Emergency Measures Organisation had not met but had been in contact with each other to discuss possible threats posed by the storm.

He added that Police Commissioner Jonathan Smith had been in contact with Police Operations throughout the night.

Mr. Horton said he did not expect schools to be disrupted today.

The Bermuda Weather Service storm warning continued to be in effect all night. Today winds are expected to decrease as the low pressure system moves away but a gale warning is in effect, intermittent showers are expected and a small craft warning will be in effect for tonight.