Jamaicans are finding out the true extent of devastation
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Hurricane Ivan turned a bride's dream day into a Caribbean nightmare after her �7,000 wedding in Jamaica became a fight against time.
Karen and Tony Collins from Cambridge were to take their vows exactly four years after the day they met.
But an hour before the beach ceremony they had to leave the island.
Karen, 40, had to hitch up her wedding gown and run across the resort to get to the service on time and said she looks stressed in her wedding pictures.
"I was trying to smile through gritted teeth," said Karen. "We are married - but I don't know how.
Planning since February
"We really wanted to get married on the anniversary of the day we got together, and we'd been planning it in earnest since February.
"We're thankful that we got off the island safely and our thoughts are with all the Jamaican people after this terrible hurricane.
"I was so sad to hear that people had lost their lives."
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The hotel's wonderful wedding co-ordinator, Arlene, arranged to move the ceremony forward
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Karen, a business support manager, said from Orlando, Florida: "The hotel manager sat everyone down and told us 'you're leaving at 2pm'.
"The wedding was supposed to be at 2.30 and so I was in floods of tears.
"The hotel's wonderful wedding co-ordinator, Arlene, arranged to move the ceremony forward."
Staff at the Sandalls Ocho Rios resort were "absolutely brilliant" said Karen, but she criticised operators Thomas Cook for lack of organisation as the evacuation took place.
Independent travel agent
A spokeswoman for Thomas Cook said: "We had no option but to get people out.
"We can't take chances with people's personal safety."
Karen praised her independent travel agent, Debbie Hollingsworth of Norwich-based Holiday-Elite, for her work in making the emergency arrangements.
Mrs Hollingsworth said: "It's such a shame Karen's wedding plans were ruined by this terrible hurricane, but hopefully she and Tony can make the best of their remaining honeymoon."
Karen and Tony are now on honeymoon in Florida.
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