October 26, 2012: As Sandy lashes the Bahamas, it leaves behind dozens of deaths in Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica

Sandy's position on October 26. Image: NASA

Friday, October 25, 2013, 6:11 AM -

RETRACING HURRICANE SANDY: Each day on theweathernetwork.com we will retrace the path and events that led to Hurricane Sandy making landfall in New Jersey on October 29, 2012.

After doing its worst to Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti, Hurricane Sandy continued on its path toward the United States, leaving dozens of people dead in its wake.

The storm made landfall in Jamaica on October 24 with sustained winds up to 130 km/h, and again in southeastern Cuba on October 25 with winds up to 175 km/h.

Though weaker by the time it moved over the Bahamas on October 26,  it was still at Category 1 strength, with winds of 128 km/h.

It was still blamed for two deaths in the Bahamas, with more than a thousand homes damaged.

In some parts of the archipelago, around 300 mm of rain were reported.

The death toll was greater in the countries Sandy left behind.

In Cuba, the storm ripped roofs of houses, toppled trees and killed at least 11 people in the east of the island.

At least one death was reported in Jamaica, along with damage to homes, public buildings and the country's all-important cash crops.

But Haiti, despite not feeling Sandy's landfall, was the worst hit, with more than 50 people dead in landslides, floods and building collapses.

Still reeling from the effects of the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 300,000 people, the country was ill-prepared to handle Sandy's strong winds and pounding rains.

And as Sandy was lashing the Bahamas, the U.S. states of New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania and North Carolina, along with Washington, D.C., declared a state of emergency and braced for the storm's approach.

TOMORROW ON THE WEB: After a brief downgrade, the storm re-strengthens as the U.S. scrambles to prepare for its arrival.