Tropical Storm Fiona is expected to become a hurricane as it nears Puerto Rico, as people brace for potential landslides, flooding and power outages.
The storm was located 135 miles southeast of St. Croix on Saturday, moving west at 13 miles on a path forecast to pass near Puerto Rico.Tropical Storm Fiona was expected to become a hurricane as it neared Puerto Rico on Saturday, threatening to dump up to 20 inches of rain as people braced for potential landslides, severe flooding and power outages.
"We are already starting to feel its effects," Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said at a news conference in which the lights briefly went out as he spoke, prompting groans and laughs across the island. "We should not underestimate this storm." Many Puerto Ricans worried about serious power outages since the reconstruction of the island's power grid razed by Hurricane Maria in 2017 only recently began. The grid remains fragile and power outages occur daily, with some 37,000 customers already in the dark Saturday.
Forecaster posted a hurricane watch for the U.S. Virgin Islands as well as the southern coast of the Dominican Republic from Cabo Engaño westward to Cabo Caucedo and for the northern coast from Cabo Engaño westward to Puerto Plata. Pierluisi said $550 million in emergency funds were available to deal with the storm's aftermath along with enough food to feed 200,000 people for 20 days three times a day.
Fiona, which is the Atlantic hurricane season's sixth named storm, was predicted to bring 5 to 10 inches of rain in eastern and southern Puerto Rico, with as much as 20 inches in isolated spots. Rains of 4 to 8 inches were forecast for the Dominican Republic, with up to 12 inches in places. Life-threatening surf also was possible from Fiona's winds, forecasters said.
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