SAN DIEGO — A San Diegan living in Puerto Rico for a year rode out Hurricane Fiona in fear.
“It’s so scary,” said Dawnelle Guidone, who sent CBS 8 videos of the storm as it approached her apartment in Isabela, rattling windows.
With 115 mph winds and heavy rain, Fiona pounded Puerto Rico on Sunday, leaving millions of people without power and water.
Guidone, who moved there in November, says this was unlike any storm she's ever experienced in San Diego.
“It was so loud and the howling just didn't stop,” said Guidone. “The wind, you could hear it circling through the house. You can hear the rain pounding against the windows and the rattling wouldn't stop,”
We interviewed Guidone over the phone because she has no internet service, but that's the least of her problems right now.
“We haven't had power since Sunday around 2,” said Guidone. “We don't have water and we're told it's going to be a couple of days for both,”
The category 3 storm hit other parts of the island even worse with heavy flooding. It washed out roads, knocked down power lines, and damaged structures.
Kevin Cole lives in the city of Luquillo. He says Fiona was heading straight toward them, but then turned.
Luckily, he avoided the worst of the storm.
“What we got here was a lot of heavy, heavy rain and thunderstorms, lightening,” said Cole.
Kevin has lived in Puerto Rico for almost 9 years. He was there when Hurricane Maria, with its 175 mph winds, devastated the area in 2017.
He says lessons learned then paid off with people more prepared.
“We were ok with this one and we'll be ready for the next one, I suppose,” said Cole.
Guidone hopes there won't be a next one. She's only on the island for a year while working remotely for a company in Carlsbad. But while going through the hurricane was an experience she'd like to forget.
She says her overall adventure has been a fantastic experience.
“It's been amazing. This is totally paradise. The people are so sweet, laid back, you just get right into the rhythm of life here,” said Guidone.
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