Heavy Rains Kill 3, Force 30,000 To Evacuate In Dominican Republic

About 30,000 people have been forced to leave their homes in the Dominican Republic in recent days following persistent heavy rainfall caused by weather systems lingering over the Caribbean nation and dumping rain across much of its northern region for more than a month.

Local media reports indicated that three people have died in the flooding, including a seven-year-old girl who attempted to cross a river, a 19-year-old boy who tried to cross on horseback, and an infant girl in the capital after a wall of her home collapsed under pressure from the rains.

“The government’s priority at this time is to save lives, protect property and preserve infrastructure,” President Luis Abinader’s office said in a statement on Monday, urging residents to avoid high-risk areas.

Abinader has also declared a national emergency in five provinces, as well as in the capital, in response to the worsening situation.

A day earlier, Emergency Operations Center (COE) Director Juan Manuel Mendez said at a press briefing that 30,500 people had already been evacuated, 14 communities were cut off, about 6,100 homes were flooded, while highways and bridges suffered varying degrees of damage.

“The rains will continue,” meteorological institute chief Gloria Ceballos said on Monday, adding that conditions were expected to ease slightly before strengthening again over the weekend.

“We have a frontal system that remains stationary in the northeast,” she said. “The soil is already saturated. We have practically 45 days of it raining every day in some parts of the territory.”

In nearby Puerto Rico, a United States territory, authorities have also warned that heavy rain and thunderstorms could lead to urban flooding later on Monday.