Thousands told to evacuate Gulf Coast as Hurricane Laura nears
Thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in the coastal US states of Texas and Louisiana as Hurricane Laura barrels towards them.
The storm is expected to move from Cuba through the Gulf of Mexico, hitting both states by Wednesday.
The hurricane lands as another storm, Marco, struck Louisiana on Monday, bringing strong winds and heavy rain.
Both have already lashed the Caribbean, destroying homes and killing at least 20 people.
US President Donald Trump has issued a disaster declaration for Louisiana, ordering federal assistance to co-ordinate relief efforts.
More than 385,000 residents were ordered to leave the Texas cities of Beaumont, Galveston and Port Arthur, while an additional 200,000 were told to evacuate Calcasieu Parish in south-western Louisiana.
Port Arthur, Texas, is home to the nation's largest oil refinery, and workers have been taken off of at least 281 offshore drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, officials said on Monday.
Initially, both storms Marco and Laura were forecast to hit Louisiana as hurricanes within 48 hours of each other - raising concerns, particularly as it would have been the first time in recorded history that the state had been hit by two back-to-back hurricanes.
Now only Laura is expected to make landfall as a hurricane, as Marco has been downgraded to a tropical storm.
The US National Hurricane Center's (NHC) changed forecast has bought more time for residents along Louisiana's coast to prepare.
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