At least 21 Killed by Torrential Rain in Dominican Republic

Thousands have been displaced and at least 21 people killed as heavy rain fell on the Dominican Republic over the weekend, with 26 out of 31 provinces under alert on Saturday.

With a rainfall of almost 300 millimeters during the last 24 hours as of Sunday, according to the National Meteorological Office (Onamet), water flooded streets and homes, caused power outages, and damaged infrastructure – including the wall of a highway tunnel which collapsed and killed nine people on Saturday.

In the early hours of Monday morning, Dominican President Luis Abinader said, “In the last 24 hours, in specific areas, up to 431 millimeters of water have fallen due to the tropical disturbance affecting the country and which so far is the largest rainfall in the history of our nation.”

He said he was “deeply distressed” by the loss of life due to heavy rains.

“We stand together in solidarity with the affected families at this difficult time. We offer our unconditional support to all those affected by this emergency.”

According to the Dominican Emergency Operations Center (COE), 2,600 homes were impacted and over 2,500 people needed rescue. A total of 13,000 people were displaced.