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A dam in Puerto Rico is failing after Hurricane Maria and forcing towns to evacuate

Sep 23, 2017, 5:07 AM

In what the government is calling an “extremely dangerous” situation, a dam in Puerto Rico is failing and forcing two towns to evacuate.

The Guajataca Dam on the island’s northwest coast is prompting flash flooding downstream just days after Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico completely without power.

Buses near the dam are currently evacuating residents “as quickly as they can,” the Associated Press reported.

A chart from the US Geological Survey showing water levels for the dam shows the extent of the damage. Hurricane Maria ripped through Puerto Rico on Wednesday, making landfall as a powerful Category 4 storm with 155-mph winds and leaving 100% of the island without power.

At least 26 people have been killed by the storm so far as it moves through the Caribbean. It is currently moving past the Turks and Caicos islands with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph. Hurricane warnings are currently in effect there as well as in the southeastern Bahamas.






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