World

Tropical Storm Olga Death Toll Now 38

by Vinny | December 14, 2007 at 09:55 am

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Update: According to one source the death toll is now 40 with all but 3 of the dead being from the Dominican Republic.

The death toll in the Caribbean from Tropical Storm Olga has risen to
38, The World Food Programme has appealed today for urgent support to the
Dominican Republic.

Previous NP coverage here.

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, Dec 14 (Reuters) - The discovery of the bodies of 12 Haitians who drowned on a farm in the Dominican Republic raised the death toll from Tropical Storm Olga to at least 38, authorities said on Friday.
The bodies were found near Castanuelas, a village near the Dominican border with Haiti, said civil defense officer Juan Nunez. Read more from the source: Reuters

Vehiculo en Santiago - Tormenta Olga, originally uploaded by blogsantodomingo.

[q
url="http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/EGUA-79VL4G?OpenDocument"]SANTO
DOMINGO – The World Food Programme today appealed for urgent support to the
Dominican Republic where for the second time in just over a month, a tropical
storm has forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes in search of
shelter and food. [/q][q
url="http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/EGUA-79VL4G?OpenDocument"]

38,000 have abandoned their homes after Sub-tropical Storm Olga swept across
the country yesterday. An estimated 7,600 homes are reported damaged and 137
communities in the north-central and south-eastern regions have been isolated as
roads are damaged by floods and bridges have collapsed.

"Some of the affected people were just beginning to rebuild their lives after
Tropical Storm Noel last month and now they find their efforts seriously set
back or literally washed away," said WFP Regional Director Pedro Medrano from
WFP's regional office in Panama. "They need our help as do all the other
communities now affected by this destructive wave of storms."

[/q]

Image credit: NOAA Latest image of former Tropical Storm Olga.

Below is the last advisory issued by the National Hurricane Center.

DEPRESSION OLGA ADVISORY NUMBER 9NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL1720071000 PM EST WED DEC 12 2007 ...OLGA DEGENERATING INTO A BROAD AREA OF LOW PRESSURE WITH A FEWSQUALLS... AT 1000 PM EST...0300Z...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL DEPRESSION OLGA WASLOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 18.9 NORTH...LONGITUDE 77.6 WEST OR ABOUT 80MILES...130 KM...NORTHWEST OF KINGSTON JAMAICA AND ABOUT 235 MILES...380 KM...EAST OF GRAND CAYMAN. THE DEPRESSION HAS SLOWED DOWN AND IS NOW MOVING TOWARD THE WESTNEAR 13 MPH...21 KM/HR. THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUEDURING THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 30 MPH...45 KM/HR...WITH HIGHERGUSTS CONFINED TO A FEW SQUALLS NORTH OF THE CENTER. THE DEPRESSIONIS EXPECTED TO BECOME A REMNANT LOW WITHIN THE NEXT 12 HOURS OR SO.ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 1008 MB...29.77 INCHES.OLGA IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE ADDITIONAL RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 1TO 2 INCHES OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN BAHAMAS...EASTERN CUBA...JAMAICAAND HISPANIOLA. THESE RAINS COULD PRODUCE LIFE-THREATENING FLASHFLOODS AND MUD SLIDES.REPEATING THE 1000 PM EST POSITION...18.9 N...77.6 W. MOVEMENTTOWARD...WEST NEAR 13 MPH. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...30 MPH.MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE...1008 MB. THIS IS THE LAST PUBLIC ADVISORY ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL HURRICANECENTER ON THIS SYSTEM UNLESS REGENERATION OCCURS. ADDITIONALINFORMATION ON THIS SYSTEM CAN BE FOUND IN HIGH SEAS FORECASTSISSUED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE...UNDER AWIPS HEADER NFDHSFAT1 AND WMO HEADER FZNT01 KWBC. Source: Hurricane Center

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ryan

at 09:59 on December 14th, 2007

Vinny, thanks for getting this story out so quickly. It will now show up on the home page for four hours. If new developments justify it, I'll renew this flag for another cycle.