Nations rush to help islands devastated by Hurricane Irma

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — French, British and Dutch rescuers struggled to rush aid to a string of Caribbean islands Thursday after Hurricane Irma left at least six dead and thousands homeless as it traced a course that could lead to a catastrophic strike on Florida over the weekend.
A swath of South Florida — including much of the Miami metropolitan area of 6 million people — was placed under a hurricane watch, with forecasters saying Irma could punish the entire