Hurricane Fiona - news: Storm landfall in Dominican Republic as 1,000 stranded and power out in Puerto Rico
Officials say it could take several days for full power resoration - follow for the latest updates
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Your support makes all the difference.More than a million residents of Puerto Rico are without power as Hurricane Fiona departed the US island territory and continued on a path to the Dominican Republic.
Wind speeds of 85mph and “historic” rains were felt as the tropical storm made landfall on Puerto Rico’s eastern shores on Sunday, where many rivers are now heavily flooded and at least one road bridge was swept away.
As of Monday morning, more than 1.3 million homes were still without power as conditions remained too dangerous for repairs across large swaths of the island. Power company LUMA warned that it could take several days for full power resoration.
The storm made landfall early Monday in the Dominican Republic and is on track to brush past the southeast Bahamas, as well as Turks and Caicos into Tuesday.
Overnight, US President Joe Biden issued an emergency disaster declaration to speed-up the relief process for the island, which was days away from marking the fifth anniversary of another powerful hurricane that caused thousands of deaths and the collapse of vital energy infrastructure in 2017.
Fiona’s centre has moved onto the Dominican Republic, but a long trail of rainfall continues to the east of the storm’s eye.
As a result, rain is expected to continue throughout the day in Puerto Rico, bringing further risk of floods and damage even as the hurricane moves across Hispaniola.
Running water issues
Some areas of Puerto Rico are going without running water, with the water authority saying that they’re working to restore service to affected areas.
Residents have been encouraged to boil their water as service is restored – even as power remains out for much of the island.
Storm to head north
Hurricane Fiona is forecast to head northeast after sweeping over the Dominican Republic, reaching the Bahamas on Tuesday and Wednesday and Bermuda on Thursday night.
By this weekend, the storm could bring heavy rains and strong winds to parts of Atlantic Canada, including Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
New York to offer support to PR
New York Governor Kathy Hochul repeatedly pledged support for Puerto Rico on Monday as the devastation from Hurricane Fiona starts to come into view.
The state will send at least 50 state police officers to the island, according to Governor Hochul.
New York has one of the largest stateside Puerto Rican communities.
National Guard performs rescues
The National Guard has reportedly rescued more than 1,000 people as floodwaters surged over the island.
A full count of any potential injuries or deaths is still unclear, especially as electricity remains out in many regions and rainfall continues.
Swells to come in Atlantic
The National Weather Service is warning that as Hurricane Fiona moves up through the Atlantic – growing in strength to at least a Category 3 hurricane – the seas could become incredibly choppy, with swells up to 56 feet (17 metres) on Friday
“Mariners should be making plans to avoid the area,” the agency warns.
Puerto Rico’s non-voting representative to the US House of Representatives said that the Coast Guard hopes to re-open the Port of San Juan on Monday afternoon and commence search and rescue operations.
She adds that the Coast Guard expects there to be some sunken boats, but have not received any reports.
Hurricane season kicks into high gear
The 2022 hurricane season in the Atlantic got off to a slow start, with just three named storms by the end of August.
But in the past few weeks, three storms have formed and strengthened into hurricane as Danielle, Earl and Fiona.
Fiona has so far been the most destructive of the three, as Danielle lingered over the open ocean and Earl merely grazed Bermuda.
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