The deputy minister of Public Works in charge of roads and highways told reporters that the torrential rains in December caused damages to roadways, highways and bridges estimated at RD$800 million. The official, Mayobanex Escoto, was particularly emphatic as he pointed out the damage to the Luperon Tourist Highway that links Santiago and Puerto Plata, and the main highway that goes between Navarrete and Puerto Plata. Landslides and sunken portions of the roadway have made transit difficult on both roads. The El Caribe reports that the Public Works Ministry is spending RD$100,000 every day to keep the Tourist Highway open to traffic. Earthen berms and signs warning of lane closures dot the highway which was designated a tourist destination in 1992 and crowned by the Ecological Park dedicated to coffee. One of the latest reports by Civil Defense authorities had registered 36 more houses in the process of sliding down the mountainside. At least three deadly accidents have been attributed to the bad state of repair of the Navarrete-Puerto Plata highway.