Hurricane Maria Causes Devastation in Puerto Rico, St. Croix

Amanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Updated: Sep 22, 2017

Hurricane Maria Causes Devastation in Puerto Rico, St. Croix

Hurricane Maria has flooded parts of the Dominican Republic after the storm pushed through Puerto Rico and St. Croix.

Hurricane Maria has killed about 17 people.

Puerto Rican officials said they were still assessing how much Maria damaged or destroyed when she hit the island Wednesday. It's unclear how many homes and businesses were destroyed.

"There's a lot left to be done to understand the extent of the damage," said Kenneth Merten, U.S. principal deputy assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere affairs.

Maria was a Category 4 storm when she made landfall, making it the strongest hurricane to hit the island in years. The storm blocked off roads with debris and knocked out electricity.

"It's nothing short of a major disaster," Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossellini told reporters.

President Donald Trump said he will visit the U.S. territory. U.S. crews and military were also headed to the island to help.

In St. Croix, Maria knocked out power on the island, but officials do not have any reports of deaths caused by the storm. In the Dominican Republic, winds also cut power to most of the northern islands.

The storm hit about two weeks after Hurricane Irma slammed two other Virgin Islands-- St. Thomas and St. John.

 

Photo credit: ©Thinkstock/RamonBerk



Hurricane Maria Causes Devastation in Puerto Rico, St. Croix