Tropical Storm Tomas: Hurricane Warning for Haiti, Cuba

by Jordan Yerman | November 4, 2010 at 07:55 am

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Tropical Storm Tomas Approaches Haiti & Cuba: Could Reach Hurricane Strength

As Tropical Storm Tomas threatens to become Hurricane Tomas, hurricane warnings are in effect for Haiti, as well as for the southern Bahamas and Guantanamo in Cuba. A tropical storm warning is in effect for Jamaica and the Cuban provinces of Holguin and Santiago de Cuba. A tropical storm watch is in effect for the southern coast of the Dominican Republic near the border with Haiti.

Tropical Storm Tomas: National Weather Service Advisories

Tent Cities Threatened by Tropical Storm Tomas

If Tropical Storm Tomas indeed becomes Hurricane Tomas, those stuck in the tent cities outside Port-au-Prince will get the worst of it. Authorities have ordered the tent cities evacuated, but residents have nowhere else to go. Meanwhile, buildings in need of only minor repairs still sit vacant.

Yet of those 200,000 damaged or destroyed homes, only 40 percent are irreparable, says Kit Miyamoto, the CEO of Miyamoto International, Structural and Earthquake Engineers (MI), which has been helping assess the city. Dr. Miyamoto notes that about 60 percent of them, or 120,000 homes, could easily be repaired with only days worth of work