Haiti and the Dominican Republic Share the Caribbean Island of Hispaniola

Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. When tropical storm Jeanne hit Haiti and the Dominican Republic in September 2004, over 20 inches of rainfall occurred in 24 hours–more than a third of the rain that typically falls during an entire year. Forestry practices in these two tropical countries have been quite different. While the Dominican Republic's forests remain largely intact, most of Haiti's forests had been removed by 1990 as the rapidly growing population became increasingly dependent on subsistence farming in mountainous regions of the island. Tropical storm Jeanne created a national disaster for Haiti with over 3000 lives lost, but the Dominican Republic experienced very
short-lived effects and only 18 deaths.


-Why would the effects of the storm have been so much more pronounced and long-lasting in Haiti than in the Dominican Republic?

A) Haiti received much more rain than the Dominican Republic.
B) The lack of forests in Haiti created a warmer land surface,which fed more heat energy into the hurricane,worsening the storm on that side of the island.
C) The deforested areas in Haiti experienced increased volume and speed of rainfall runoff,causing mudslides and severe flooding.
D) Because of the absence of forests,Haiti experienced stronger winds than the Dominican Republic.