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Article snippet: Hurricane Maria regained “major hurricane status” early Thursday as it marched toward the Dominican Republic, bringing heavy rainfall there even as Puerto Rico was battling extensive floodwaters. The eye of the storm moved off Puerto Rico’s coast Wednesday afternoon, but Maria was still causing catastrophic flooding on the island early Thursday, the National Weather Service said. By 1 a.m., flash flood warnings were expanded to cover the entire island. “If possible, move to higher ground NOW!” the National Weather Service office in San Juan said. The storm’s center passed near the northeastern coast of the Dominican Republic early Thursday, and was expected to approach the Turks and Caicos Islands and southeastern Bahamas by Thursday night. It was upgraded early Thursday to a Category 3 storm, with sustained winds of up to 115 miles per hour, after losing some strength as it crossed Puerto Rico. Electricity was out across all of Puerto Rico, and Gov. Ricardo Rosselló announced a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew effective Wednesday until Saturday. “The damage is very extensive,” he said Wednesday night in an interview on CNN. “It is nothing short of a major disaster.” Here’s the latest: • Forecasters say Puerto Rico will see about two feet of rain by Friday. Storm surges are expected to raise water levels by as much as six feet in the Dominican Republic. • Governor Rosselló told CNN late Wednesday that officials knew of only one fatality in Puerto Rico, but noted that they... Link to the full article to read more