After Hitting Puerto Rico, Hurricane Fiona Strikes the Dominican Republic

On Monday, Hurricane Fiona swept through the Dominican Republic, just a day after causing widespread power outages in Puerto Rico, with the governor calling the damage 'catastrophic.' Many residents were also left without water service.

The impact of Fiona was particularly severe as Puerto Rico is still reeling from Hurricane Maria, which resulted in nearly 3,000 fatalities and devastated the power infrastructure in 2017. Five years later, over 3,000 homes still bear blue tarps as roofing.

Fiona's winds and rains tore pavement from roads, ripped roofs off buildings, and inundated homes. The storm also destroyed a bridge and flooded an airport runway.

While authorities reported no fatalities directly linked to Fiona, officials in Puerto Rico indicated it was too soon to assess the full extent of the damage. The storm was anticipated to bring heavy rain across the U.S. territory.

Governor Pedro Pierluisi refrained from estimating the time required to completely restore power but mentioned that for most customers, 'It’s a matter of days.'

'The damage we are witnessing is catastrophic,' Pierluisi stated.

The National Weather Service on the island reported flash flooding in the south-central regions of Puerto Rico and urged residents to 'Move to higher ground immediately!' via Twitter.

Some areas in Puerto Rico received up to 22 inches of rain, with forecasts predicting an additional 4 to 8 inches as the storm progresses, and even more in certain locations.

Rainfall of up to 15 inches was anticipated for the eastern Dominican Republic, leading authorities to shut down ports and beaches, advising most people to remain at home from work.

'It’s crucial for people to realize that this situation is far from over,' stated Ernesto Morales, a meteorologist with the weather service in San Juan.

He noted that flooding has reached 'historic levels,' prompting authorities to evacuate or rescue hundreds of individuals throughout Puerto Rico. Water service was disrupted for over 837,000 customers—about two-thirds of the island's total—due to contaminated water at filtration facilities or power outages, officials reported.

Brown water surged through streets, flooded homes, and enveloped a runway in southern Puerto Rico. Authorities reported that at least 1,300 individuals sought refuge in shelters across the island overnight.

On Monday morning, Fiona was located approximately 10 miles southeast of Samana in the Dominican Republic, with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour, as reported by the U.S. National Hurricane Center. The storm was moving northwest at 8 miles per hour.

Fiona was predicted to impact the Dominican Republic on Monday, followed by northern Haiti and the Turks and Caicos Islands, posing a risk of heavy rainfall. The storm may also affect the far southern Bahamas on Tuesday.

On Monday, officials announced that power had been restored to 100,000 customers in Puerto Rico, which has a population of 3.2 million. However, Luma, the power distribution company, indicated that it could take several days to fully restore service.

President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency as the storm's eye approached the southwest region of Puerto Rico.

Fiona had previously wreaked havoc in the eastern Caribbean, resulting in the death of one man in the French territory of Guadeloupe when floodwaters swept away his home. Notably, the storm struck Puerto Rico on the anniversary of Hurricane Hugo, which devastated the island in 1989 as a Category 3 storm.