Hurricane Noel Expected to Brush U.S. Coast
Hurricane Noel, the deadliest Atlantic storm this year, is expected to have a small effect on the U.S. east coast even though experts predict it will remain well off the country's coastline.
The Category 1 hurricane is about 425 miles south-southeast of North Carolina's Cape Hatteras and moving north-northeast at 17 mph and sustained winds near 80 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center at 11 a.m. EDT.
Noel dumped 15 inches of rain on the Bahamas but is expected to have a much milder effect on parts of the U.S. East Coast.
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Forecasters predict Noel would shed up to about 1 inch of rain across North Carolina's Outer Banks and 2-4 inches with isolated maximum totals of 6 inches across eastern New England, according to CNN.
"Noel is expected to lose tropical characteristics within the next 24 hours," the hurricane center said Friday, noting that the storm would "strengthen and increase in size as an extratropical cyclone."
As Noel moved into the Atlantic Ocean, it reportedly left 118 people dead across the Caribbean. The storm triggered floods and landslides that killed at least 116 people in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, according to The Associated Press. One person was reportedly killed by the storm in the Bahamas on Thursday and another person in Jamaica.
On Thursday, about 24,000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas in Cuba. At least 2,000 home were damaged but no deaths were reported. In the Bahamas, about 400 people were forced to leave their homes.
Furthermore, over three days of heavy rain caused an estimated $30 million in damages to the Dominican Republic's rice, plantain and cacao plantation, said Minister of Economy Juan Temistocles Montas, according to AP.
Food for the Poor, the second largest international relief organization in the U.S. is responding to the recent damages by Tropical Storm Noel in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
The agency, which works extensively in the Caribbean and Latin America, has shipped about 30 containers of aid to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Relief items include tents, blankets, cleaning supplies, medical supplies, clothing, food and other essentials.
FFTP works in 16 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America and is the foremost relief organization working in Haiti.
Meanwhile, the Southern Baptist Convention's relief arm is assessing the needs and planning how to respond to the aftermath. The organization anticipates immediate needs such as food, clean drinking water and plastic sheeting for leaking roofs. Other needs such as helping to bury victims, counseling survivors, clearing roads and repairing homes may also be necessary.
Compassion International, an international child development organization, is also assisting affected families in the Dominican Republic.
Noel is the fifth named hurricane in the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30.
