Hurricane Rafael causes new damage to Cuba

Photo: Yamil Lage Agence France-Presse A girl carries a child in a flooded street after Hurricane “Rafael” passed through Batabano, Mayabeque province, Cuba, November 7, 2024.

Andrea Rodriguez – Associated Press in Havana

Published yesterday at 9:26 a.m. Updated yesterday at 6:05 p.m.

• Americas

Cuba was buffeted by a powerful Category 3 hurricane that tore through the island on Thursday, knocking out the country's power grid, uprooting trees and damaging infrastructure. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Hurricane Rafael passed through western Cuba late Wednesday, about 47 miles (75 kilometers) west of Havana.

Some 50,000 people have sought refuge in Havana, and thousands more have done so in areas south and west of the capital, living in flood zones or in makeshift homes. The main road from Havana to the southern coastal city of Batabanó was dotted with dozens of poles and electrical wires.

Electricity was beginning to be restored in some areas on Thursday. “During the meeting of the National Defense Council, it was reported that it had been possible to restore the electrical system between the center and the east” of the country, the Cuban presidency reported on X.

In the three provinces of Havana, Mayabeque and Artemisa, in the west of the country, which were hardest hit by the hurricane, “work on the lines is accelerating in order to determine the damage and assess their connection to the national electrical system as soon as possible,” the same source added.

As Rafael crossed Cuba on Wednesday night, it became a Category 2 hurricane and entered the Gulf of Mexico before heading towards Mexico, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

As of late Thursday morning, the hurricane was about 200 miles (320 km) west-northwest of Havana. It was blowing maximum sustained winds of 160 km/h and was moving west-northwest at 15 km/h.

Cayman Islands and Jamaica

Earlier this week, Rafaelbrushed past Jamaica and struck the Cayman Islands, uprooting trees, knocking down power lines and causing heavy flooding in some areas.

Jamaican authorities are searching for a couple who were last seen inside a car that was swept away by floodwaters, police told Radio Jamaica Online.

Thousands of customers in Jamaica and Little Cayman remain without power as crews continue to work to restore power after the storm. Local media reported that authorities were also evacuating more than 100 tourists from Little Cayman, which was hardest hit.

Rafaelis expected to continue weakening as it turns over open waters and heads toward northern Mexico, although the hurricane center has warned that there is “significant uncertainty” about the storm’s future path.

Read also

• Hurricane “Rafael” leaves Cuba, plunged into darkness again
• Seven dead after “Oscar” passes Cuba, 70% of population has power
• Hurricane “Oscar” hits Cuba, paralyzed by massive power outage

Feeling of déjà vu

Meanwhile, many Cubans were left to pick up the pieces Wednesday night, with a strange feeling of déjà vu after a turbulent few weeks in the Caribbean nation.

In October, the island was hit by a double whammy. First, Cuba was rocked by island-wide power outages that lasted several days, a result of the energy crisis. Shortly after, it was hit by another powerful hurricane, Oscar, which killed at least six people in the eastern part of the island.

All of this fueled already simmering discontent in Cuba amid a continuing economic crisis, which has driven many people to emigrate from the island.

Schools and public transportation were suspended in parts of the island, and authorities canceled flights to and from Havana and Varadero. Thousands of people in the west of the island have been evacuated as a precaution.

Rafael is the 17th named storm of the season.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a federal agency in the United States, has predicted that the 2024 hurricane season will likely be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms. The forecast calls for 13 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes.

An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, including 7 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes.

With Agence France-Presse