Three people dead in Caribbean as Tropical Storm Elsa makes its way north

Three people in the Caribbean have died as Tropical Storm Elsa makes its way north to Cuba. 

The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency said in a situation report on Saturday that one death was reported in Soufriere, a town in Saint Lucia.

According to The Associated Press, a 15-year-old boy and 75-year-old woman died Saturday in the Dominican Republic.

Elsa strengthened to a category 1 hurricane on Friday, the first of the Atlantic season, while it moved through Barbados and continued moving through the Caribbean.

It was downgraded to a tropical storm on Saturday.

As of 8 p.m. EDT, the center of the storm was moving west-northwest at about 23 miles per hour. Maximum sustained winds remained near 70 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Elsa is forecasted to move near Jamaica and parts of eastern Cuba on Sunday.

By Monday, the storm is expected to move across central and western Cuba, which would move it toward the Florida Straits. On Tuesday, the storm is forecasted to move near or over portions of the west coast of Florida.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has declared a state of emergency ahead of Elsa’s expected landfall.

Officials in the state decided to halt rescue efforts for bodies after the collapse of a residential building in Surfside, Fla., as authorities look to demolish the remaining structure ahead of the impending storm.

Updated July 4, 6:06 a.m.