PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti (CMC) — Haitian authorities Tuesday said that more than 2,500 homes had been damaged as a result of floods caused by the passage of a cold front on Monday. There have been no reports of deaths.

The Civil Protection said in its partial assessment that nearly 20 communes in the departments of the North, Northeast and Nippes had been affected by the rains that caused 2,578 houses to be affected by floods and three being destroyed.

It said that nearly 2,500 families need temporary shelter following more than 36 hours of rainfall that caused several rivers to overflow their banks.

In Cap-Haitien, several neighbourhoods near the Haut du Cap River have been flooded, with the authorities saying that part of the historic city centre had been flooded. They said trees were also uprooted by the gusts of wind.

In the North-East, the Caracol power plant is underwater, while in the Nippes department, volunteers from the Baradères communal civil protection committee have identified 153 flooded houses in the city centre.

The General Directorate of Civil Protection is urging people in flood-prone areas and exposed to strong winds to take the necessary precautions to protect themselves and their loved ones, and, above all, not to cross flooded rivers under any circumstances.