Severe flooding hits Haiti, Dominican Republic

By: 10 years ago

Some building stand in floodwater after heavy rain in Cap-Haitien, Haiti, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2014. Haiti’s Department of Civil Protection said at least 6,000 homes were flooded in Cap-Haitien and several nearby communities. (AP)

CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti — Thousands of families in Haiti and the neighboring Dominican Republic have been displaced by floods from a storm system that drenched the countries for several days, officials said Thursday.

Haiti’s Department of Civil Protection said at least 6,000 homes were flooded in Cap-Haitien and several nearby communities and at least 66 homes were completely destroyed. At least five people were killed and one was missing.

President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe both toured the area Thursday as officials distributed food and other supplies to flood victims as waters began receding with drier weather.

People in affected neighborhoods walked through knee-high water to retrieve what they could from their flooded homes. Officials said at least 4,000 people were in temporary shelters set up at local schools.

The storm also caused widespread damage to farms, but agricultural officials were still evaluating the extent of the damage and a damage estimate was not yet available, the civil protection agency said in a statement.

In the Dominican Republic, more than 2,000 people were displaced by floods and mudslides, the country’s Emergency Operations Center said.

Overall, the storm is blamed for at least 12 deaths in the two countries and nearby Puerto Rico.