The Dominican government held a press conference on Tuesday, September 26 that provided an update on how the country is recovering from Hurricane Maria.
Mobile phone, text, and limited data service will resume in three jurisdictions by the end of the business day today, according to telecommunication agency Digicel’s country manager Nikima Royer.
Dowasco General Manager Bernard Ettinoffe said that water restoration will hopefully happen by mid-October.
Three of the country’s petroleum suppliers reiterated that there are no shortages of petroleum product on the island. Rubis has 3,500 barrels of gasoline and 8,000 barrels of diesel in storage. The West Indies Oil Company has two weeks of inventory on the island, with another tanker coming tomorrow with a month’s worth of inventory. Meanwhile, Petro Caribe has 11,000 barrels of diesel in storage.
Flow Dominica Country Manager Jeffrey Baptiste said that phone service is expected to be restored to police and government headquarters by Friday.
Lastly, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said that the British have committed to bringing helicopters to support relief efforts.
The country will hold briefings daily, with an update from the Health Ministry expected to come tomorrow.
