Hurricane Maria has thrashed parts of the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and high winds after making a direct hit on Puerto Rico that caused severe flooding and cut power to almost all the island.
Maria has killed at least 10 people as it rages through the Caribbean region, the second major hurricane to do so in September.
It ripped roofs off almost all structures on the island country of Dominica, where seven people were confirmed dead - a number that is expected to climb.
Maria was ranked a category four storm, with sustained winds up to 250km/h when it hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the strongest storm to hit the US territory in nearly 90 years.
It tore roofs from buildings, snapped power lines and turned roads into torrents as it cut across the island.
The island was under a flash flood warning, with the storm was forecast to dump 50-76cm of rain through Friday, the US National Hurricane Center says.
Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello said the only fatality immediately reported was a man struck by a piece of timber hurled by high winds.
"It's nothing short of a major disaster," Rossello said in a CNN interview, adding it could take months for electricity to be completely restored.
Maria weakened as it went across Puerto Rico and picked up strength as it passed over warm Caribbean waters.
Early on Thursday, it was a category three storm north of Punta Cana on the east coast of the Dominican Republic.
Maria was expected to pick up strength as it churned towards the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas later on Thursday.
Maria would then move north in the Atlantic Ocean at the weekend. There was no indication whether it would hit the continental US.
It was a category five storm when it struck the eastern Caribbean island nation of Dominica on Monday night with devastating force.
