Evacuations in Puerto Rico over ‘imminent dam break’

San Juan, Sep 23 (IANS) About 70,000 people living near the Guajataca River in Puerto Rico were asked to evacuate immediately because of an "imminent dam break", the media reported.

The announcement was made by the National Weather Service on Friday afternoon, reports CNN.

"All Areas surrounding the Guajataca River should evacuate now. Their lives are in danger! Please share!" the service tweeted.

Puerto Rican Secretary of State Luis Gerardo Rivera Mar?n told CNN that the evacuations were difficult because the island was heavily damaged by Hurricane Maria, which made landfall in the US territory on Tuesday.

Many parts of Puerto Rico are still flooded and over 3 million people still do not have power supply.

The dam was constructed by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority to create a lake that provides drinking water to residents of the area, according to the US Geological Survey.

(This story has not been edited by Social News XYZ staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)