Cuba left reeling after Category 3 hurricane ravages island and knocks out power grid
Cuba is reeling after a powerful Category 3 hurricane ripped across the island and fierce winds knocked out the country’s power grid
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Cuba was left reeling Thursday after a fierce Category 3 hurricane ripped across the island and knocked out the country’s power grid.
The magnitude of the impact remained unclear through the early hours of the day, but forecasters warned that Hurricane Rafael could bring “life-threatening” storm surges, winds and flash floods to Cuba after ravaging parts of the Cayman Islands and Jamaica.
On Wednesday evening, massive waves lashed at Havana’s shores as sharp winds and rain whipped at the historic cityscape, leaving trees littered on flooded roads. Much of the city was dark and deserted.
As it plowed across Cuba, the storm slowed to a Category 2 hurricane chugging into the Gulf of Mexico near northern Mexico and southern Texas, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
But many Cubans were left picking up the pieces from the night before, with a strange sense of déjà vu after a rocky few weeks in the Caribbean nation.
In October, the island was hit by a one-two punch. First, Cuba was roiled by stretching island-wide blackouts stretching on for days, a product of the island’s energy crisis. Shortly after, it was slapped by another powerful hurricane that killed at least six people in the eastern part of the island.
It stoked discontent already simmering in Cuba amid an ongoing economic crisis, which has pushed many to migrate from Cuba.
While the State Department issued a travel warning for Cuba because of the story, the Cuban government also raised an alarm, asking citizens to hunker down.
Classes and public transport were suspended on parts of the island and authorities canceled flights in and out of Havana and Varadero. Thousands of people in the west of the island were evacuated as a preventative measure, and many more like Silvia Pérez, a 72-year-old retiree living in a coastal area of Havana, scrambled to prepare.
“This is a night I don’t want to sleep through, between the battering air and the trees,” Pérez said. “I’m scared for my friends and family.”
The concern came after the storm knocked out power in the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, where it also unleased flooding and landslides.
Rafael is the 17th named storm of the season.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted the 2024 hurricane season was likely to be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms. The forecast called for as many as 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.
An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.