Hurricane Marilyn flirted with Bermuda last night as the storm which caused death and destruction in the Caribbean left the Island virtually unscathed.

Although winds gusted up to 55 knots there were no reports of any damage and power cuts were isolated and quickly restored.

Hotels said they had a quiet time, but the Airport was again disrupted as airlines cancelled flights. British Airways, which tried to land a plane three times during Hurricane Luis, this time decided not to fly.

However, the storm continued to put Bermuda in the international spotlight as weather forecasts in America used the Island as a point of reference, possibly affecting tourism.

Tourism Director Mr. Gary Phillips said: "Bermuda has consistently been in the news since Hurricane Felix. Every single time there is a hurricane, Bermuda is a point of reference. It's not helpful.'' He said the hurricanes so far this season could affect visitor numbers adding: "I cannot remember any year or a time when we've had this much focus on the weather, even when Bermuda is not affected by the hurricane.'' Hurricane Marilyn, a category one storm, came closest to Bermuda at about 5 p.m. yesterday when she was 150 miles west north-west of the Island.

Wind speeds averaged between 35 and 45 knots, but gusts reached as high as 55 knots during the early evening. An inch of rain fell through the day.

Yesterday, disruption was minimal although the Airport was once again affected as flights cancelled.

The last American Airlines and USAir flights were delayed until today.

British Airways postponed its flight for 24 hours and both Delta and Continental cancelled flights yesterday. Flights should be normal today.

Airport manager of operations Mr. John Williams, said: "It has not affected us too badly, but it is becoming a bit of a headache.

Marilyn passes by third storm to hit us recently.

"It reduces our income when planes cannot land and although she's moved away I hope there are no more hurricanes on their way.'' The feeling was echoed throughout the Island as Bermuda Electric Light Company engineers were once again on standby to fix broken power lines.

However, there were only isolated power-outs yesterday and most were fixed within the hour. Engineers stayed on standby throughout the night however.

Belco spokeswoman, Mrs. Linda Smith said: "The situation was manageable, but we are keeping our fingers crossed. Generally we seemed to have escaped in pretty good shape.'' Hotels also escaped unscathed with the Pink Beach Club and Cottage Colony, one of the worst hit during Hurricane Felix, suffering nothing from Marilyn.

Manager Mr. Barry Marquardt, said: "We had a very uneventful day, although our weather station recorded winds up to 63 knots.'' At the Mermaid Beach Club, spokesman Mr. Mark Costello, said: "Our biggest inconvenience were guests who had to stay an extra night because of the storm.

"We are getting quite used to getting bashed by hurricanes and taking the usual precautions is becoming habit now, for everyone on the Island.'' Cruise ships had to berth in different ports, but were otherwise unaffected by the storm. Police and Fire Brigade also reported no problems.

Last night, Mr. Rick Fleetwood a spokesman for the Bermuda Weather Service, said: "It looks like the forecast worked out pretty well -much like Luis with Marilyn passing us well to the west.'' The few problems in Bermuda did not bear comparison to the devastation caused by Marilyn in the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and St. Thomas. At least eight people died when she struck the Islands, destroying hundreds of homes and forcing hundreds of people into emergency shelters. Emergency aid was rushed to the US Virgin Islands, but too few trucks were available to distribute it. The US National Guard was forced to help out and also guarded the relief centre, mindful of the possibility of looting.

The hospital at Puerto Rico was damaged and people, especially children, were falling ill from infected water supplies.

On St. Thomas and St. Croix about 600 people were being cared for in shelters and about 300 Red Cross workers were either in or en route to the islands.

The destruction, especially on St. Thomas, was astonishing. The hurricane damaged or destroyed 80 percent of the homes there and a fifth of the homes on St. Croix and St. John were destroyed, as were 100 people died when she struck the Islands, destroying hundreds of homes and forcing hundreds of people into emergency shelters.

Emergency aid was rushed to the US Virgin Islands, but too few trucks were available to distribute it. The US National Guard was forced to help out and also guarded the relief centre, mindful of the possibility of looting.

The hospital at Puerto Rico was damaged and people, especially children, were falling ill from infected water supplies.

On St. Thomas and St. Croix about 600 people were being cared for in shelters and about 300 Red Cross workers were either in or en route to the islands.

The hurricane damaged or destroyed 80 percent of the homes on St. Thomas. One fifth of the homes on St. Croix and St. John were destroyed.