The Tropical Storm Noel brought heavy rains to Cuba Wednesday as it moved towards the Bahamas. US forecasters raised hurricane warnings for the Bahamas.

In the Dominican Republic, 20 people were killed due to the floods caused by Noel. Most of the victims were from the south coast, east of Santo Domingo.

Officials could not report the exact number of casualties, estimating between 22 and 36 victims; this is due to difficulties in reaching the remote areas on Hispaniola, shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Police, civil defense and military are working to reach the remote areas in the Dominican Republic, according to media sources. More than 300,000 families will need help; 145,000 have already received food, mattresses, sheets and mosquito nets.

At 1500 GMT, the centre of the storm was 40 miles southeast of Camaguey, Cuba and 270 miles south of Nassau, Bahamas.

According to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami, Noel is expected to stay over Cuba for the next 24 hours. Meanwhile in Hispaniola, 25 cm of rain have already fallen and the rain continues. A consequence of the heavy rain will be the high levels of the rivers.

According to the NHC quoted by BBC News, “These rains, particularly in Hispaniola, are expected to cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides.”

Many bridges collapsed thus isolating many communities; in the Dominican Republic, the power was cut off temporarily on Monday. People are being evacuated according to authorities.

Early today residents of Florida were advised to watch the progress of the Tropical Storm Noel. In the next few days, the storm could pass close to the state. The NHC said that Noel was moving “erratically” towards the northwest with nearly 5 mph, but it is expected to turn away from Florida and rush into the Atlantic.

A storm watch could be issued for the southeast part of the state if Noel is going to change its direction. This means that storm conditions are possible within 36 hours. The National Weather Service issued a warning for today for the south east coast of Florida about gale-force winds and flooding.