Killer Storm Heads Toward Bahamas

The tail end of Tropical Storm Noel triggered mudslides and floods in the Dominican Republic and Haiti as the death toll rose to 60 on Wednesday—deadlier than all but one Atlantic hurricane this season.

The slow-moving storm lurched out of Cuba and stalled over the Atlantic, but was projected to skirt Florida and batter the Bahamas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

With rain still falling two days after the storm hit, rescuers were struggling to reach communities cut off by flooding on the island of Hispaniola. As they did, they found a rising toll of death and damage—at least 41 dead in the Dominican Republic, 18 in Haiti and one in Jamaica.

At least 50,500 Dominicans fled their homes, 12,000 of which were damaged, said Luis Antonio Luna, head of the Emergencies Commission. Flooding also forced the evacuation of about 1,000 prisoners from a prison north of the Dominican capital.

Luna said officials were trying to reach dozens of isolated communities, but bad weather, a lack of helicopters and damage to bridges and highways slowed rescue efforts. [AP]