Hurricane honeymooners: Oxford couple's terrifying near-miss with the most powerful Atlantic hurricane on record

Duncan and Sophie Gibbons have been stuck on the Dominican Republic this week as Hurricane Irma ploughed through neighbouring islands, reducing entire towns to rubble.

The couple from Littlemore said that while other guests were evacuated off the island by travel agents, this was not an option offered by First Choice, who organised their trip.

Instead they and a shrinking number of fellow guests hunkered down while the storm battered their resort, threatening to destroy it.

Mrs Gibbons, 39, an Oxford University administrator, said the couple got married in August last year, but waited 12 months to take 'the honeymoon of a lifetime'.

They finally arrived at the Hard Rock Hotel in Punta Cana last Saturday, ready to embark on two weeks of luxury pampering.

Mr Gibbons, who works at the Coventry Telegraph, said the first they knew of the danger was on Monday when the terrifying storm was just hours away.

The couple tweeted: "On Monday we were told our boat trip was cancelled because of the hurricane...what hurricane?!"

On Tuesday, the hurricane made landfall on Barbuda and Puerto Rico, destroying towns and communities on both islands and killing several people.

With top wind speeds of 295km/h (183mph), Irma was the strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean before reaching the Caribbean.

On Wednesday, Mr and Mrs Gibbons and all the other guests at their hotel received a letter from management saying: "For those guests who can make arrangements to leave Punta Cana, please do so."

• Learn how Oxfordshire is playing its part in the massive international relief effort 

Mr Gibbons, 43, said: "From 5pm on Wednesday, guests like us in ocean front rooms were moved back a block because it still wasn't clear if Irma would directly hit us.

"Staff were boarding up windows and getting rid of as many hazards as possible like pulling coconuts off palm trees and tying down furniture that couldn't be moved.

"Because the staff were keeping calm, it really helped guests keep calm for the most part."

By this point the couple said wind and rain were battering their resort, and the hotel banned people from walking around on the ground levels because of the danger of flash flooding.

Mr Gibbons said: "Power was going off and on and cot beds were being made up in the convention centre.

"The uncertainty was starting to build up panic among guests as the hurricane got closer.

"For our safety, we were restricted to certain areas near the main building."

The couple said other tour operators had evacuated their holidaymakers off the island, but they did not get this option.

Mr Gibbons added: "First Choice haven't really been in touch with us. Other tour operators were evacuating guests from the island, but we just got a text from our rep."

Meanwhile the death toll rose to 18, and hundreds of thousands more were injured, homeless or missing.

The Hard Rock Hotel managers essentially put the resort on lock-down, putting on special entertainments and games to try and keep their few remaining guests calm.

From about 11pm on Wednesday, the couple said the rain and wind was 'unbelievably' strong as Irma's eye passed above.

Mr Gibbons said: "Guests were panicking by this point and debris was flying around hitting windows."

By Thursday morning, as the eye of the hurricane had swept on to the Turks and Caicos Islands, wind and rain continued to batter Punta Cana.

But Mr Gibbons said: "At breakfast time on Thursday morning, there was definitely a feeling of relief amongst us all, and gratitude that we were kept safe."

Yesterday, the couple told the Oxford Mail they were heading out onto the island to help locals with the clear-up.

But they were also keeping a very close eye on the weather forecast: with Irma barely passed, a secondary hurricane, Jose, is already baring down on the Caribbean.

Mr Gibbons said: "We're just hoping that hurricane Jose picks a different path to Irma and stays out in the ocean."