Flooding in Santo Domingo

JD Jones

Moderator:North Coast,Santo Domingo,SW Coast,Covid
Jan 7, 2016
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Here's some pics and videos:
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Ave. Churchill https://twitter.com/i/status/1588693661633896449
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malko

Campesino !! :)
Jan 12, 2013
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wow, crazy...... and you will probably glow for ever ever in the dark if you go anywhere THAT water.
 
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Jan 9, 2004
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One of those photos show “Level 4” car flooding at the Toyota dealership Vegamovil.

Since the DR does not have “branded” titles for vehicles, it begs the question whether they will be restored and resold and whether their franchise agreement with Toyota requires those vehicles situations to be disclosed to the consumer.

Vegamovil is a well known and respected dealer…….but the DR is not well respected for consumer advocacy successes…….notwithstanding proconsumidors efforts.

Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
 

chico bill

Dogs Better than People
May 6, 2016
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And you think these flood damaged cars won't be back on the market soon ?
 
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keepcoming

Moderator - Living & General Stuff
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Our neighbor sent us some photos of the area not too far from where we live near Nunez Caceres, unbelievable the water. Her husband and son were "stranded" on their way home from Agora Mall.
 

Kipling333

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Jan 12, 2010
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So why did the water now flow away because this is not the first time that Santo Domingo has heavy rain for two or three hours?? It is because all the drains are blocked and all the small streams are blocked with rubbish and debris. There are many pictures in the newspapers showing what is remaining after the water has subsided,tons and tons of rubbish. Every day you can see rubbish being swept into the drains and during storms you can see the water gurgling up the drain holes in the roads but you never see the drains being cleaned. It is the same situation in other cities. Maintenance is an unknown word.!!
 

JD Jones

Moderator:North Coast,Santo Domingo,SW Coast,Covid
Jan 7, 2016
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The issue was the amount of rain that fell in such a short period of time. They received the equivalent of a month's worth of rain in one day.
A large amount of Santo Domingo has no drainage system at all, so water takes much longer to run off.
 
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NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
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So why did the water now flow away because this is not the first time that Santo Domingo has heavy rain for two or three hours?? It is because all the drains are blocked and all the small streams are blocked with rubbish and debris. There are many pictures in the newspapers showing what is remaining after the water has subsided,tons and tons of rubbish. Every day you can see rubbish being swept into the drains and during storms you can see the water gurgling up the drain holes in the roads but you never see the drains being cleaned. It is the same situation in other cities. Maintenance is an unknown word.!!
Santo Domingo was going to flood even if it had the world's best and most complete drainage system with no rubbish in sight. Any city receives the amount of rain it did in such a short period of time will flood. There is no other way.
 
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MariaRubia

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I think we should all think ourselves lucky because this rain is part of what could have been a hurricane passing near to us, which didn't turn into a hurricane and missed us anyway. My point is that we have dodged a bullet in terms of hurricanes this summer.
 

MariaRubia

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And you think these flood damaged cars won't be back on the market soon ?

I'm pretty sure they will have insurance. Those types of companies are pretty professional these days. They may well check them over and get them professionally valeted, explain briefly and vaguely that the car had been caught in a lot of rain but had been repaired and knock a few dollars off the price.
 
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I'm pretty sure they will have insurance. Those types of companies are pretty professional these days. They may well check them over and get them professionally valeted, explain briefly and vaguely that the car had been caught in a lot of rain but had been repaired and knock a few dollars off the price.

“Level 4” flood cars as those at Vegamovil appear to be, are likely to require extensive repairs. It is not just a matter of drying them out and cleaning them up. Some may have taken water into the valves and when they are attempted to be started……ruin the motor. And that is just the beginning. Restoring flood damaged cars correctly is time consuming and expensive.

As to their value, if they are new, their true retail value repaired would be approximately 50% less. Insurance may indeed pay for the dealers loss…….but then where do they now end up…..and more importantly who may unsuspectingly purchase one of these.

Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
 
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chico bill

Dogs Better than People
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I'm pretty sure they will have insurance. Those types of companies are pretty professional these days. They may well check them over and get them professionally valeted, explain briefly and vaguely that the car had been caught in a lot of rain but had been repaired and knock a few dollars off the price.
Flooded cars are not 'caught in a lot of rain', I am talking about them being under deep water. They are inundated, they get mold very quickly in the carpets and seat foam, but worse are the electronics and computers - they don't just dry out and are good to go. Immerse your laptop in the tub and tell us how it works.
What about air bag sensors only 18" off the ground, or lighting connections.
They are waterproof for splashes but not up to the windshield deep flooding.

Those dealers are not so professional when it comes to making quick bucks (same in the US) and the insurance companies won't come close to covering everyone's losses.
Very few dealers in DR are reputable - maybe they are improving but lots of larceny here.
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
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I think we should all think ourselves lucky because this rain is part of what could have been a hurricane passing near to us, which didn't turn into a hurricane and missed us anyway. My point is that we have dodged a bullet in terms of hurricanes this summer.
That has been the case of every summer since 1998. "Dodging a bullet in terms of hurricanes" is more normal than thought for Santo Domingo, particularly major hurricanes. I think DR1 didn't exist back then, which means most expats have never been in the DR during the arrival of a major hurricane.

Before Georges in 1998, the one my grandfather used to mention a lot was David in 1979 based on all the damage it did and he witnessed. Those types of storms mark very heavily whomever lives through them to the point it becomes a dividing point of before and after. Granted that the DR doesn't get hit with major hurricanes as much as other Caribbean islands. At one point I read the DR actually has the lowest hurricane risk in the Caribbean, even lower than Florida, due to its geographic position and that most major hurricanes go north or south of the country. The same can't be said regarding the esrthquake risk since the DR has one of the highest amount of tectonic faults in the Caribbean and in The Americas in general.
 
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