The Tropical Storm Franklin that affected the Dominican Republic on 22-23 August 2023 brought a lot of water to some areas of the country, water that was indeed needed in most places.
The water was a blessing to some reservoirs, while barely contributing to others. The National Institute for Hydraulic Resources (Indrhi) said that the reservoirs that benefited the most from the rains were Valdesia-Barias, and Sabana Yegua, which are major sources of water for Santo Domingo, and much of the coastal areas west of the National District.
In Hatillo, nearly 22,000,000 m3 of water poured into the reservoir. Jigüey also received a lot of water, nearly 15 million cubic meters.
As reported by many persons, the rains did not fall evenly over the entire country, and some of the reservoirs have reported decreasing levels of water after the storm passed. As a result, the head of Indrhi, Olmedo Caba, said all of the major dams in the Cibao Central and the Northwest Line: Tavera-Bao, Rio Blanco, Moncion, Maguaca and Chacuey all has less water on Thursday than they had on Tuesday.
A spokesperson for the Institute said that the completion of the Monte Grande dam project will add a huge amount of water-storing capacity to the system and that the National Water Pact also contemplates at least two new dams, one in Elias Piña and another in the East.
The National Meteorological Office (Onamet) reported that in Barahona, in the start of Franklin’s path over the island, over 12 inches of water were measured falling during the tropical storm.
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Diario Libre
28 August 2023