Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, is under extreme flood warning, with wind speeds of up to 110 kilometers per hour brought by the storm.

Haiti and the Dominican Republic are preparing for Potential flooding and destruction On Saturday, Tropical Storm Elsa brought strong winds to the area.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) stated that the maximum sustained wind speed measured by an aircraft was 110 kilometers (70 miles) per hour, which downgraded Elsa from a hurricane to a tropical storm.

The NHS stated at 2 pm Eastern Time (18:00 GMT) that the center of the storm is passing south of the southwestern peninsula of Haiti, bringing tropical storm conditions to parts of the country and the neighboring Dominican Republic. Update.

The agency said: “It is expected that there will be little change in the intensity tonight, but it is expected to gradually weaken when Elsa is approaching or above the sky on Sunday and Monday.”

In the Dominican Republic, officials evacuated people living near rivers and creeks in the coastal province of Barahona because of the expected severe flooding. The capital Santo Domingo is also under extreme flood warning.

The emergency team stated that they have 2,500 centers ready for evacuation.

Some people worry about the condition of their homes, and many live under corrugated roofs. “I have a lot of leakage of zinc,” said resident María Ramos. “What will we do? Only God knows.”

‘The whole country is threatened’

Haiti killed 31 people in Hurricane Laura in August. Although no evacuation was ordered, the authorities used social media to alert people to the storm and urged them to evacuate if they live near the water’s edge or mountainside.

“The entire country is under threat,” the Civil Defense Agency said in a statement. “Make every effort to escape, lest it’s too late.”

Director Jerry Chandler told the Associated Press that the agency’s basic items, including food and water, are used as a Gang violence has surged recently Thousands of local people have been displaced.

“For three weeks, we have been supporting families fleeing gang violence,” he said. “We are working hard to update our inventory, but the biggest problem is logistics.”

He said officials are still trying to figure out how to deliver supplies to the southern regions of Haiti, which are prepared for Elsa’s influence.

On July 3, a man observes strong waves during the passage of Tropical Storm Elsa in Malecon, Santo Domingo [Erika Santelices/AFP]

At the same time, people bought water and food before the storm.

“I’m doing everything I can to protect myself. Civil defense doesn’t do that for me,” said Darlene Jean-Pierre, 35, who bought six cans of water and vegetables and fruit.

“I have other worries about the streets… I have to worry about gang fights. In addition, we have hurricanes. I don’t know what kind of disaster this will cause.”

The National Hurricane Center said it expects the storm to move off the southern coast of Hispaniola — the area is divided into Haiti and the Dominican Republic — and then move to nearby Jamaica and eastern Cuba on Sunday.

The agency said it will head to the Florida Strait on Monday and then move near or over the west coast of Florida on Tuesday.

Florida authorities said on Saturday that they Planned demolition Fearing that Elsa might demolish the rest of the building in a dangerous way, a partially collapsed 12-story apartment was built near Miami as soon as possible.