Fiona Kills two in Turks and Caicos

When Hurricane Fiona made landfall on Turks and Caicos Tuesday, it was a category three, battering the island so much so the government had to impose a curfew.

Early Tuesday, Fiona was centered 20 miles (30 kilometers) southeast of Grand Turk Island. It had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph) and was moving north-northwest at 10 mph (17 kph).

Reports from Turks and Caicos said a 58-year-old man died after police said he was swept away by a river in the central mountain town of Comerio while another death was linked to a power blackout when a 70-year-old man was burned to death after he tried to fill his generator with gasoline while it was running, officials said.

In the Dominican Republic, on the other hand, authorities reported one death. That death occurred when a man hit by a falling tree. The storm displaced more than 12,400 people and cut off at least two communities.

At least four of the country’s international airports were closed, officials said and the hurricane left several highways blocked, and a tourist pier in the town of Miches was badly damaged by high waves.

The Dominican president, Luis Abinader, gave early notice that they would need several days to assess the storm’s effects.

Meanwhile over 900 residents had to be rescued by the National Guard as floodwaters continue to rush through towns in eastern and southern Puerto Rico with up to 30 inches of rain forecast for some areas. Multiple landslides also were reported.

Authorities there said at least 1,300 people and some 250 pets remain in shelters across the island.

By Tuesday morning, authorities said they had restored power to more than 260,000 customers on the island of 3.2 million people.

Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluisi has warned it could take days before everyone has electricity.

Water service was cut to more than 837,000 customers — two-thirds of the total on the island — because of turbid water at filtration plants or lack of power, officials said.

Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said the Category 3 storm is likely to strengthen even more over warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean as it moves northward and warned that it could approach Bermuda by late Thursday.