There have been reports of damage to several houses across St Vincent and the Grenadines as Hurricane Elsa impacts the island. At 11 am the center of the system passed between the islands North Coast and the South of St Lucia.
Several houses in Sandy Bay, an area already devastated by the eruption of La Soufriere, have lost their roofs. It was also reported that the community police station suffered structural damages.
Reports from Owia, a community located further North, are that several homes have also lost their roofs due to high winds.
In the South of the island, Belair resident Patel Gibson is now homeless after a fallen tree flattened his wooden structure.
Damage to house roof in Owia
In a release, the National Emergency Management Organisation said that while the centre of Hurricane Elsa has passed over the north of mainland St. Vincent, the island can still expect hurricane-force winds, rough seas, and heavy rainfall in the outer quadrant and tail end of the system.
NEMO urged citizens not to venture outside during the passage of Hurricane Elsa stating that it is dangerous to do so as fallen trees and debris can cause damage to life and property.
The SVG MET Office, in its 11 am update, said sustained surface winds between 75 and 95 mph (120 to 152 km/h) with higher gusts are expected to spread across St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the remainder of this morning; persisting into the evening with light rain and pockets of intense showers and thunderstorm activity.
Rainfall accumulations of at least 3 to 6 inches (75 to 150 mm) are possible with isolated higher amounts by tonight. Further accumulations of 2 inches (50mm) are likely by Saturday night.\
In Barbados, there are widespread reports of families trapped in their homes, collapsed houses, roofs off, damaged homes, power and water outages.
On the forecast track, Elsa will move away from the Windward Islands during the next several hours, move across the eastern Caribbean Sea later today and tonight, and move near the southern coast of Hispaniola late Saturday or Saturday night.
[News 784]
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