“This was something incredible that we have never seen before,” Ramona Santana in Higüey, Dominican Republic, told CNN en Español. “We are on the streets with nothing, no food, no shoes, no clothes, just what you have on your back… We have nothing. We have God, and hope help will come.” Now with sustained winds of 130 mph, Fiona’s center is set to pass just west of Bermuda early Friday, with conditions beginning to deteriorate Thursday, CNN meteorologist Robert Shackelford said. The island nation is under a hurricane warning. Americans are being warned not to travel there and relatives of US government personnel may leave, the State Department said. “The National Hurricane Center is confident that Bermuda will experience tropical storm-force winds,” Shackelford said. “Once Fiona passes Bermuda, the storm is forecast to affect Nova Scotia by Saturday afternoon.” In rural Canada, residents should prepare for tropical storm or even hurricane conditions starting as early as Friday night by securing outdoor items, trimming trees, charging cellphones and creating an emergency kit, said Jason Mew, emergency manager. management office. The shelters will be open to those experiencing homelessness and anyone else in need, he said. Meanwhile, a developing storm poised to be named Hermine could become a formidable threat to the US Gulf Coast by next week, forecast models now show. In Puerto Rico, where Fiona brought flooding rains and blackouts across the island as it made landfall Sunday, more than 450,000 people had no or intermittent water service and 1 million homes and businesses were still without power Wednesday, according to with the government’s emergency gateway system. In the Dominican Republic, where Fiona made landfall early Monday, more than a million customers were without running water and nearly 350,000 homes and businesses were dark Wednesday, said Maj. Gen. Juan Mendez Garcia, director of the country’s emergency operations center. More than 600 homes were destroyed and some communities were cut off from aid, he said.
Dog with electricity problems in Puerto Rico
As Fiona slammed into the Dominican Republic in the middle of the night, Iveris Viera waded into floodwaters to wake her neighbors in Higway, she said. Now she is trying to dry her belongings. “The rooms are empty. I had to throw away a lot. There is no electricity or water to wash anything,” Viera told CNN en Español. Puerto Rico, meanwhile, made some progress on the aid front: President Joe Biden on Wednesday approved a major disaster declaration for the US territory, FEMA said. The move allows residents to access grants for temporary housing and home repairs as well as low-interest loans to cover uninsured property losses. “This ensures our people will have access to additional assistance from FEMA to recover from the damage caused by this event,” Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluigi said in a tweet. But crews faced setbacks in restoring power. Equipment problems temporarily knocked offline lines that are believed to have been repaired, Josué Colón, executive director of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, said Wednesday. Fiona struck almost exactly five years after Hurricane Maria plunged the island into a widespread blackout. Across the island, more than 800 people were housed Wednesday in dozens of shelters, according to Puerto Rico’s housing secretary, William Rodriguez. The mayor of New York sent personnel from city agencies to Puerto Rico to help officials survey the damage. “The team will include representatives from New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM), the NYC Department of Buildings, the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, and the NYC Department of Design and Construction,” according to a news release. from the mayor’s office. Fiona also threatened parts of the Turks and Caicos on Tuesday, and many areas of the British territory were still without power on Wednesday, including Grand Turk, South Caicos, Salt Cay, North Caicos and Middle Caicos, Anya said Williams, Acting Governor of the Islands. Officials there were relieved no one was killed in the storm, they said as they began visiting islands and making repairs. CNN’s Melissa Alonso, Jessica Hasbun, Jorge Venegas, Amy Simonson, Chris Boyette and Jamiel Lynch contributed to its report.
