Tropical Storm Kills 23 in Haiti

Tropical Storm Laura is suspected of killing at least 23 people when it hit Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico over the weekend with strong winds and floods.

On Monday, the system passed up the southern coast of Cuba and was forecast to intensify into a hurricane, weather.com reports.

The Associated Press reported that at least 20 people have died in Haiti. The AP has claimed three civilians in the Dominican Republic were killed.

On social media, Haiti's civil defense agency said two children, two men and a 10-year-old child were among the dead there. The girl was killed when a tree dropped to a home in Anse-a-Pitres, which is on the Dominican Republic border along the southern coast.

The Agency said the evacuations were continuing on Sunday morning.

A video posted by the civil protection authority in Haiti showed a torrent of muddy water flowing underneath the building.

During its peak, the hurricane put more than 1 million vulnerable people out of control in the Dominican Republic, where authorities used megaphones to warn citizens to leave. Tens of thousands appeared helpless on Monday morning, but the country's three utilities had restored coverage to more than 400,000.

The dead included a 44-year-old woman and her 7-year-old son who died in the capital city of Santo Domingo when their home collapsed, El Commercio reported, citing information provided by the Emergency Operations Centre.

Flooding triggered the destruction of many homes in Santo Domingo. More than 1,000 people have been evacuated around the region.

The flooding also cut off more than 120 isolated communities, El Caribe reported.

Video posted to social media showed transformers popping.

Earlier, the hurricane carried high winds and intense rain to Puerto Rico, leaving around 200,000 homes and businesses without electricity on Saturday night. More than 10,000 lost water, the AP reported.

The storm brought wind gusts to 67 mph and dumped 3 to 6 inches of rain in southern and eastern Puerto Rico.

River flood stranded two people along the quickly rising Toro Negro Water in Ciales, Puerto Rico. The couple were reported to have been rescued on Saturday night, El Neuvo Dia reported.

The rainfall also caused a variety of landslides, including one that closed the route, the paper published.

Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vázquez proclaimed a state of emergency and urged people to shelter indoors.