Minister Gonzalo Castillo of the Ministry of Public Works and Communication is heading the effort to quantify the damages caused by the recent heavy rains in many parts of the country. Castillo wants to quantify the cost of the damage to present them to President Danilo Medina.
According to Castillo: “It will take a few days to obtain an estimate.” A reconstruction commission is already in place in most of the affected areas. Members of the National Housing Institute, the Economic Dining halls and the director of the Presidential Social Plan are part of the commission. They are quantifying damages in Barahona, Pedernales, Azua, Peravia and San Cristóbal in the south.
Agriculture Minister Angel Estevez is also looking at crop damage in these areas.
Damages reported by the COE talk of more than 2,500 houses affected by the rain and over 17,000 persons displaced from their homes and nearly 5 dozen communities cut off by the intense rains.
The National Weather Office (Onamet) has forecast a break in the heavy rains for Wednesday, but more rains are forecast as a new trough moves over starting Thursday, 28 April 2017.
27 April 2017
