 "Hurricane Melissa kills 25 in southern Haiti, heads toward the Bahamas")
At least 25 people were killed in southern Haiti after a river overflowed its banks amid heavy rains from Hurricane Melissa, local officials said Wednesday.
According to an Associated Press report, Jean Bertrand Subrème, mayor of the coastal city of Petit-Goâve, said that several homes collapsed in the flooding and that some residents remain trapped.
“I am overwhelmed by the situation,” Subrème said, adding that he has appealed for government assistance as the country continues to struggle with rampant gang violence and limited disaster response resources.
According to the report, only one Civil Protection Agency official was present in the affected area, leaving residents to carry out their own evacuation efforts as floodwaters surged. The region has endured seven to eight days of torrential rain, with rainfall exceeding 12 inches (30 centimeters) in some areas.
Melissa is now moving toward the Bahamas, where hurricane warnings have been issued for the central and southeastern islands, including Long Island and Crooked Island. The nearby Turks and Caicos Islands are under a tropical storm warning.
Ahead of the storm’s arrival, roughly 1,485 residents were evacuated before all flights were suspended, said Leon Lundy, State Minister for the Disaster Risk Management Authority.
“This was one of the largest and most complex pre-landfall evacuation efforts in recent national history,” CNN quoted Lundy as telling the House of Assembly, urging those still on the southeastern islands to stay indoors as conditions deteriorate.
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More Shorts“Heavy rainfall, gusty winds and power disruptions have been reported in parts of Inagua, Acklins, Crooked Island and Mayaguana,” he added.
Hurricane Melissa, the most powerful hurricane to make landfall in 90 years, has also slammed Jamaica and Cuba, where it caused “considerable damage” according to the Cuban president.
The storm, which has been downgraded to Category 2, has triggered hurricane warnings in parts of the Bahamas and Bermuda.
With inputs from agencies
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