Alex isn’t yet a hurricane, being described as more of a tropical storm. But it’s been growing in strength and is set to reach the coast as a hurricane on Tuesday.

South Texas and North Mexico are already on alert, and there’s also a threat that Hurricane Alex could hit the area of the Gulf Of Mexico where the BP oil spill continues to pollute the environment.

Alex has already hit Guatemala and Nicaragua, killing several people in both countries. There’s a high probability that Alex is going to end up being a strong hurricane, possibly category 3, so people are being urged to take he necessary precautions if they’re in its path.

I’m just really pleased I live in the U.K., where hurricanes are few and far between. We haven’t had a big one since 1986, and though that was bad it is isn’t a patch on some of the ones which hit other parts of the world.