Two hurricanes in one month: How Cuba deals with massive power outage
Hurricane Rafael left 10 million Cubans without electricity after hitting western regions with 115 mph winds. Recovery efforts face challenges due to recent Hurricane Oscar damage and existing power-grid problems
A massive power-outage hit Cuba yesterday when Hurricane Rafael knocked-out the islands electrical grid leaving millions in darkness. The storm brought 115-mph winds that damaged houses uprooted trees and destroyed power-lines
The Energy Ministry started power fixes in eastern regions but western Cuba (which got hit hardest) faces a longer wait. Jose Martinez‚ the ministrys spokesman said theyʼre working non-stop to fix the system; however most of Havanaʼs 2 million people dont have power yet
This is the second big storm in less than a month after Hurricane Oscar hit eastern Cuba few weeks ago. The power-grid was already having problems due to old plants and less oil coming from other countries. Before these storms many areas had daily black-outs
- 220‚000 people moved to safe places
- No deaths reported
- Airport opened at noon yesterday
- Schools stay closed till monday
Artemisa province known as the food-growing region got hit badly. Local farms lost lots of crops including:
- Banana plants
- Yucca fields
- Beans and corn
- Rice plantations
The situation is unbelievable - if we had problems before now its going to be much worse
The storm moved into Gulf of Mexico and doesnt threaten land anymore according to U.S Hurricane Center
