SANTO DOMINGO/PORT-AU-PRINCE, 24th August, 2023 (WAM) — At least one man was killed as Tropical Storm Franklin passed over the Dominican Republic, flooding parts of the capital and damaging infrastructure, though initial reports showed the Caribbean island of Hispaniola emerged relatively unscathed.
Franklin, which brought stormy winds and rain across the Dominican Republic and neighboring Haiti, is forecast to gather strength over the Atlantic Ocean and could become a hurricane this weekend, Reuters reported.
At 8 pm (2100 GMT), the storm had passed north of Puerto Plata on the Dominican Republic's north coast, moving north-northeast into the Atlantic at 13 mph (20 kph), according to the US National Hurricane Centre (NHC).
The head of the Dominican COE emergency services said a man had been found dead in San Cristobal province after trying to swim through floodwaters.
The NHC, which expects Franklin to near hurricane strength over the southwestern Atlantic by Saturday, said the Dominican Republic was likely to still see heavy rain, which could bring life-threatening flooding through Thursday.