Weather

10,000 flee Tropical Storm Odette

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic - Thousands of people abandoned their homes Saturday as Tropical Storm Odette lashed the Dominican Republic with torrential rains.

Odette, the first named storm on record to hit the Caribbean during December, was forecast to bring up to 15 inches of rain to parts of the Dominican Republic and neighboring Haiti.

Before the storm made landfall on the southern Dominican coast Saturday night, officials were already evacuating residents along swelling rivers and had opened the floodgates of three northern dams.

More than 10,000 people were evacuated from low-lying southwestern areas, said Julian Pena, governor of Barahona province. The government activated soldiers to help. Some evacuees took refuge at emergency shelters, while others moved in with family or friends.

It was the second time and less than a month that heavy rains have forced Dominicans from their homes. Three weeks ago, rainstorms soaked the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, forcing thousands to leave and causing at least seven deaths. More than 2,000 Dominicans were evacuated in those storms, and some remained homeless.

At 10 p.m., Odette had 50 mph winds with higher gusts, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami reported. Tropical storm-force winds extended up to 115 miles.

Odette was moving toward the northeast at 10 mph and was located at latitude 18.3 north and longitude 71.1 west, or about 10 miles south of Barahona.

The Dominican meteorological service initially recorded up to 5 inches of rain.

"The situation is very worrying because the ground in the north and northeast was already saturated ... which increases the dangers of flooding," said Jose Luis German of the National Emergency Commission.

Odette formed Thursday, four days after the official end of the Atlantic hurricane season.

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