au-Prince, October 31 , SPA -- The number of dead on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola as a result of tropical storm Noel rose to at least 30 by Wednesday and could reach 80, according to dpa. Authorities in the Dominican Republic spoke of 30 people killed and 15 missing late Tuesday, and on Wednesday the radio in the capital Santo Domingo reported 60 dead as a result of floods or mudslides. Over 25,000 people were evacuated, said catastrophe relief spokesman Ramon Francisco Rodriguez. In Haiti - located on Hispaniola along with the Dominican Republic - at least 20 people were killed, according to unofficial reports, and thousands had to leave their homes. Heavy rain continued in the early hours of Wednesday. Most streets in Santo Domingo were flooded. Many people are missing in both countries, and the authorities fear that the number of fatalities may continue to rise. Noel has now moved north, past Cuban and in the direction of the Bahamas, but predictions called for rain to persist until Thursday or Friday. A new tropical depression caused further rain. Many areas in southern Dominican Republic}UI cuthK fr+ #!e outside world due to flooded roads and destroyed bridges. "Now it is even worse than before," said one resident of Santo Domingo. The latest report Wednesday from the Miami-based National Hurricane Cantre (NHC) said Noel regained some strength off the north coast of Cuba and was moving north-north-west at 13 kilometres per hour at 1500 GMT. "Maximum sustained winds have increased" and now are near 85 kilometres per hour, with higher gusts, the NHC said in its report, which added that "some additional strengthening is forecast during the next 24 hours." The wet ground on Hispaniola led to mudslides in mountainous regions, and some rivers overflowed leading to flooding. Thousands of houses and huts were flooded since Monday, some 3,000 people were left homeless, and several bridges and roads were destroyed. Some villages were cut off from the outside world, and agriculture suffered severe damages in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. People in Central America and the Caribbean often fear the rain associated with tropical storms more than the storms' destructive force. Mudslides and floods regularly claim lives in vulnerable areas. The hurricane season in the Caribbean officially ends November 30.
