Gustav mandatory evacuation

The mayor of New Orleans has issued a mandatory evacuation order for the entire city, as Hurricane Gustav bears down on the US Gulf Coast.



Ray Nagin urged the residents of the city\'s West Bank to begin moving out by this morning, with the East Bank leaving at midday.



Gustav, which is forecast to strengthen to a Category 5 storm over the Gulf, is currently passing over Cuba.



The storm ploughed through Cuba\'s Isle of Youth this evening before hitting the mainland in Pinar del Rio province with maximum winds of nearly 240 kilometres or 150 miles per hour.



Almost a quarter of a million people have been evacuated in Cuba, where there has been extensive flooding.