SANTO DOMINGO.- Despite the damage caused by Hurricane Fiona, in the eastern part of the country there are more than 40,000 rooms available out of the 45,000 existing rooms, a figure that will allow the tourism sector to continue operating in this important region that receives about 70% of the total foreign tourists who arrive in the country, via the Punta Cana International Airport.
Yesterday, Asonahores, the Association of Hotels and Tourism, highlighted that most hotels are still operating, except for some that decided to close to repair their infrastructure damaged by the strong winds and rains of the Category 1 hurricane that hit the country early Monday morning.
In the eastern region, 40,000 rooms are available for guests, and in the province of Samaná, also heavily impacted by the hurricane, most hotel rooms are operational.
“There are cases of hotels that have damage, mostly to light structures, and they decided to close, but they will be operating between Thursday and Monday, and we are working with private and official brigades to provide the greatest possible assistance,” said Asonahores.
In the case of Punta Cana International Airport, operations closed on Sunday afternoon and were resumed at noon on Monday.
Most hotels suffered damage to infrastructure near beaches, restaurants, decorations, as well as to trees and landscaping.
On Monday, the Playa Hoteles & Resort chain temporarily closed the Sanctuary, Hyatt Zilara and Hyatt Ziva hotels in Cap Cana until Friday, September 23.
In a statement to guests at Hyatt hotels, they indicated that the property had suffered considerable damage overall and that guests would be relocated to a sister property or could leave early without incurring penalties.
Airports return to normal
The international airports of Punta Cana and La Romana operated normally yesterday, after halting operations due to damage caused by Hurricane Fiona.
According to the executive director of the Airport Department, Víctor Pichardo, during a tour of both airport terminals, the La Romana international airport resumed operations, while Punta Cana did so yesterday, Monday, after midday.
"We were able to verify throughout our journey, at the Punta Cana and La Romana airports, that all state agencies are working normally," the official said.
Pichardo, along with a commission from the Airport Department, confirmed that the areas, such as waiting rooms, access control, Immigration, and others, are suitable for the regular development of operations.
He pointed out that this weekend, La Romana airport will resume its regular operations with scheduled commercial flights, while Punta Cana has more than 65 flights scheduled for today.
"We want to emphasize that in the Dominican Republic, and especially in the eastern region of the country, the airports are operating normally and providing services to all passengers," Pichardo said.
During his tour of the Punta Cana terminal, Pichardo was accompanied by the president of the Punta Cana Group, Frank Elías Rainieri, while in La Romana he was accompanied by the general manager, Luís Rodríguez.
Also present were the DA's deputy directors, Abelardo Rutinel and Luis Cabrera, as well as the legal director, Leandro Santana.
Sources: Hoy and Diario Libre
