International

Cuba declares cyclone warning for tropical storm Idalia

Photo: EFE

August 29|

Cuba’s Civil Defense General Staff declared on Monday the Cyclonic Alarm Phase for the provinces of Pinar del Rio, Artemisa and the Isle of Youth in view of the approach of tropical storm Idalia, while the provinces of Havana and Mayabeque were placed on alert.

According to the Institute of Meteorology of Cuba (Ismet) at 21H30 on Monday, the tropical storm was passing near Cabo de San Antonio, in Pinar del Rio, moving north at about 13 km / h, with possibilities of reaching the west coast of Florida, United States, as a hurricane on Wednesday.

Hundreds of people were evacuated to the homes of relatives and friends due to the risk of flooding in Pinar del Rio, the same province that was hit by Hurricane Ian last September, which made landfall in Cuba with category 3, leaving at least two dead on the island.

“People have already been evacuated, food processing centers have been set up, the family food basket is guaranteed, health brigades and communities are being visited,” said Roberto Morales Ojeda, Chief of Organization of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba.

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For her part, Yuniasky Crespo, president of the Provincial Council, assured that “Priority has been given in this case to the elderly, vulnerable cases, bedridden and pregnant women”. The railroad service suspended departures in Pinar del Río and the maritime transportation of passengers was interrupted from the Isle of Youth.

President Miguel Diaz-Canel arrived in the country on Monday afternoon from a tour of Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa. “The first thing is to protect everyone’s life (…) you must move towards the school and wait for the situation to pass,” stated an official dressed in olive green in an area of Isla de la Juventud.

According to reports from the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC), the forecast path for Idalia will continue northward and in the evening hours it will pass near or over the westernmost point of Cuba and on Tuesday morning it will reach the southeastern tip of the Gulf of Mexico, already as a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale.

Related Topics:Cuba tropical storm Idalia

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