IN BRIEF: Erin sinks ship

Erin sinks ship

Miami - Hurricane Erin apparently sank a casino cruise ship about 90 miles off the Florida coast yesterday, writes Phil Davison. Eight crew members were plucked from life rafts after the Club Royale, which was carrying no passengers, vanished in driving rain and churning seas. The captain and two crew members were missing.

The storm also eroded beaches and killed an unknown number of unborn loggerhead turtles around Vero Beach when Erin hit Florida's Atlantic coast early yesterday. Erin faded into a tropical storm as it passed Disney World in Orlando and crossed towards the Gulf of Mexico, but could strengthen again over the Gulf.