From the BBC:
“Tropical Storm Dorian: Puerto
Rico braces for possible hurricane”
The US territory of Puerto Rico
has declared a state of emergency as it braces for a tropical storm churning
through the Caribbean. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has issued hurricane
watch and tropical storm warnings for Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Warnings
are in place for the islands of Martinique, Saba and St Eustatius. Forecasters
expect Tropical Storm Dorian to develop into a hurricane in the next 24 hours. By
Tuesday morning, the storm was 96km (60 miles) north-west of the island of St
Lucia, with maximum sustained winds of 50mph (85km/h), according to the NHC. In
Puerto Rico, a territory still recovering from the devastation wrought by
Hurricane Maria in 2017, there are fears of power cuts and damage from strong
winds. Up to 15cm (6in) of rain could
fall in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, where swells along coastlines
could cause "life-threatening surf and rip current conditions",
forecasters have said. The governor of
Puerto Rico, Wanda Vázquez Garced, who declared the state of emergency for the
US territory on Monday, has called on its more than three million citizens to
prepare. About 360 shelters would be open across the island, the governor said.
Where is Storm Dorian expected to
hit?
The storm is expected to pass
south-west of Puerto Rico and eastern Hispaniola, possibly as a Category 1
hurricane, on Wednesday night. "Slow
strengthening is forecast during the next 48 hours, and Dorian is forecast to
be near hurricane strength when it moves close to Puerto Rico and eastern
Hispaniola," the NHC said. On Thursday, Dorian is forecast to make
landfall in the Dominican Republic, before moving past the Turks and Caicos and
south-eastern Bahamas on Friday. According
to the NHC's latest projections, the storm could make landfall in the US state
of Florida late on Friday night or early Saturday morning. Tropical storm warnings have been lifted for
St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Why is Puerto Rico so concerned?
Puerto Rico is still vulnerable
after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island in September 2017, killing an estimated
2,975 people and causing a humanitarian crisis. A report by the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) suggested Maria had caused $90bn
(£73bn) of damage in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Since Maria hit, Puerto Rico has struggled to
repair its infrastructure and power grid, with Mr Trump signing a $19bn
disaster relief bill for the island. Ahead
of Storm Dorian, Puerto Ricans have been alert to the dangers, stocking up on
water, food and generators in preparation. Zaida Garcia, a resident on the
island, told ABC News that "everybody's going bananas" as the storm
approaches. "We can't afford another one, I'm telling you. We can't afford
another one," she said. In a
statement, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) said, although
Dorian is less severe than Maria, it could still "have a significant
impact".
^ Hopefully Puerto Rico and the
other areas threatened by Doran will be spared any damage or death. ^
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