Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic declare state of emergency due to tropical storm ‘Fiona’.

The Government of the Dominican Republic and the governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Pierluisi, have announced this Saturday the declaration of a state of emergency due to the passage of tropical storm ‘Fiona’.

The Directorate of the Emergency Operations Center (COE) of the Dominican Government has reported that almost half of the country’s territory is under the maximum meteorological alert, red.

Maximum sustained winds of 95 kilometers per hour have been recorded and an increase in its intensity is expected as it moves away from Guadeloupe and advances through the waters of the Caribbean Sea.

As a result, up to twelve Dominican provinces are now on red alert. Eight, are on yellow alerts and the remaining eleven, on green alert level.

In the case of Puerto Rico, Pierluisi has also declared the Prohibition Law between 6:00 p.m. on Saturday and until Sunday and the National Guard has been activated.

“It is important that we remain calm, but that we are active in ensuring our safety and that of our families, particularly for those who are in places prone to flooding,” Pierluisi said in a press conference reported by the Puerto Rican newspaper ‘El Nuevo Día’.

The secretary of the Department of Public Safety, Alexis Torres, will be the official responsible for the coordination of emergencies, explained the governor, who warned that they are prepared to request an emergency declaration at the federal level.

In addition, 15 shelters have been set up in 10 municipalities: Dorado, Bayamón, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Guayanilla, Peñuelas, Adjuntas, Ponce, Culebra and Guánica. Three people are in shelters. In total, Puerto Rico has 365 shelters with capacity for 74,500 people.

According to the 8 a.m. National Hurricane Center bulletin, ‘Fiona’ could be a hurricane or near hurricane when it moves south-southwest of the island and southeast of the Dominican Republic between Saturday night and early Sunday morning.