Tropical storm Jeanne battered the Dominican Republic, leaving at least seven people dead, five missing and over 240 injured, the authorities said Saturday.

Reports from the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, confirmed the evacuation of over 32,000 people in view of the threat posed by continuous raining leading to floods and the risk of landslides.

Most of the evacuated people -around 20,700- were channeled to official centers, while the rest sought refuge in house of relatives and friends following the decree of red alert (the top level) all over Dominican territory.

According to the most recent report by the Emergency Operations Center (COE), a 11-year-old boy drowned at the locality of Higuey, east of the country, while three of the five missing people were fishing off the coast of Samana province.

Jeanne, whose level has moved back and forth from a Category-5 hurricane and a tropical storm, has produced damage in houses and the electricity, water and telephone systems, in addition of having led to the overflowing of rivers, the uprooting of trees and the falling down of billboards.

Dominican President Leonel Fernandez suspended his trip for New York, in order to visit the most affected zones, including San Pedro de Macoris, La Romana, La Alta Gracia and the tourist resortof Punta de Cana, east of the country.

In Punta de Cana, the storm produced damage on the tourist facilities and the infrastructure of the international airport.

Source: Xinhua