Hurricane Fiona floods Puerto Rico and leaves the island without power

Hurricane Fiona headed towards the Dominican Republic on Monday after hitting Puerto Rico with floods, landslides and power outages. The governor of the US territory described the damage as “catastrophic.”

No deaths were reported, though officials said it was too early to assess the extent of damage from a storm that would still dump torrential rains across Puerto Rico on Monday.

Forecasts called for up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) of water in the eastern and southern regions of the island.

“It is important that people understand that this is not over,” said Ernesto Morales, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Juan.

Flooding had reached “historic levels,” he said, and authorities were evacuating or rescuing hundreds of people across the island.

“The damage we are seeing is catastrophic,” Governor Pedro Pierluisi said.

A brown torrent flowed through the streets, into houses and even down an airport runway in southern Puerto Rico.

Fiona also ripped asphalt from some streets and washed away a bridge in the central mountain town of Utuado, which police say had been set up by the National Guard after Hurricane Maria hit in 2017 as a Category 4 storm.

The storm also tore off the roofs of many homes, such as that of Nelson Cirino, in the coastal town of Loiza, in the north.

“I was sleeping and I saw the zinc fly away,” he said as he watched the rain soak his belongings.

Ada Vivian Román, a 21-year-old photography student, said the storm had knocked down trees and fences in her municipality of Toa Alta.

“I’m very nervous because it’s a very slow-moving hurricane,” she said.

Román said he was also concerned that public transportation, which he relied on to get to his job at a public relations agency, would be operational by the time he had to get back to the office.

“But I know that I am privileged compared to other families who are practically losing their homes because they are under water,” she said.

Biden Approves Emergency Declaration for Puerto Rico

US President Joe Biden on Sunday approved an emergency declaration for Puerto Rico, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate disaster relief and provide emergency protective measures.

US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said agency officials deployed to Puerto Rico would help with restoration efforts “when it is safe to do so.”

Fiona’s vortex was 50 miles (85 kilometers) southeast of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles (140 kilometers) on Sunday night, according to the National Hurricane Center. It was moving northwest at 15 kilometers (9 miles) per hour.

[Con información de The Associated Press y Reuters]

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