Wed | Dec 4, 2024

Elsa falls back to tropical storm after battering Caribbean islands

Published:Sunday | July 4, 2021 | 12:12 AM
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Antony Exilien secures the roof of his house in response to Tropical Storm Elsa, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, yesterday, which brushed past Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
AP
Antony Exilien secures the roof of his house in response to Tropical Storm Elsa, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, yesterday, which brushed past Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
An electrical pole felled by Hurricane Elsa leans on the edge of a residential balcony, in Cedars, St Vincent, on Friday. Elsa strengthened into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season on Friday as it blew off roofs and snapped trees in the eastern Car
AP
An electrical pole felled by Hurricane Elsa leans on the edge of a residential balcony, in Cedars, St Vincent, on Friday. Elsa strengthened into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season on Friday as it blew off roofs and snapped trees in the eastern Caribbean, where officials closed schools, businesses and airports.
This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Elsa moving through the Caribbean, over Barbados on Tuesday.
Uncredited
This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Elsa moving through the Caribbean, over Barbados on Tuesday.
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Hurricane Elsa fell back to tropical storm force as it brushed past Haiti and the Dominican Republic yesterday and threatened to unleash flooding and landslides before taking aim at Cuba and Florida.

The storm had already ripped off roofs, destroyed crops and downed trees and power lines in the eastern Caribbean on Friday, with damage reported in Barbados, St Lucia and in St Vincent and the Grenadines, which also suffered massive volcanic eruptions that began in April.

At least 43 homes and three police stations were damaged, said St Vincent Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.

“We expect that this number will increase as reports keep coming in,” he said. “We have some damage, but it could have been far worse.”

In St Lucia, the wind damaged a secondary school, pummelling desks, overturning chairs and sending papers flying after blowing off the roof and siding. Officials also reported significant damage to roofs, including major damage at three government buildings.

A similar report emerged from Barbados, where more than 580 roofs were damaged, dozens of trees and power lines fell and about 50 per cent of customers were still without power, according to emergency officials.

At least one death was reported in St Lucia, according to the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency.

HEAVY RAINFALL

Yesterday evening, Elsa was centred about 195 miles (310 kilometres) east of Kingston, Jamaica, and was moving west-northwest at 28 mph (44 kph). It had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph) as the tropical storm, which had been a Category 1 hurricane earlier yesterday, weakened during its approach to Hispaniola and Cuba, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

The long-term forecast track showed it heading towards Florida as a tropical storm by Tuesday morning, but some models would carry it into the Gulf or up the Atlantic Coast. A tropical storm watch was in effect for the Florida Keys from Craig Key westward to Dry Tortugas.

Meanwhile, authorities in Puerto Rico rescued eight people, including two children, in stormy conditions after their boat sank amid 8- to 10-foot (2- to 3-metre) waves.

Elsa was the first hurricane of the Atlantic season and the earliest fifth-named storm on record. It is forecast to drop four to eight inches (10 to 20 centimetres) of rain with maximum totals of 15 inches (38 centimetres) across portions of southern Hispaniola and Jamaica.

– AP