Consequences of Hurricane "Ian": The electricity went out all over Cuba

Enlarge image

Impact of Hurricane "Ian": In Cuba, the province of Pinar del Río was hit particularly hard

Photo:

Ramon Espinosa/AP

After Hurricane Ian passed through Cuba, there was a nationwide power outage.

This is due to weather-related damage to the power grid, said the state electricity provider of the socialist Caribbean state, UNE, on Tuesday evening (local time) on Facebook.

Restoring the power supply is a complicated process that will take place gradually during the night and in the morning.

In the capital, Havana, lights could only be seen in the few buildings that had generators — mostly hotels.

Parts of the country, including the capital, were without power for most of Tuesday.

"The damage is great"

The storm made landfall in western Cuba early Tuesday morning (local time) as a category 3 of 5 hurricane.

It caused great destruction: there were floods, buildings and infrastructure were severely damaged, trees were uprooted - also in Havana.

The full extent was still unclear.

"The damage is great, even if it has not yet been statistically recorded," wrote President Miguel Díaz-Canel on Twitter after a visit to the province of Pinar del Río, which was particularly hard hit.

Even before "Ian," Cuba's power supply was very unreliable.

The infrastructure is outdated, the power plants cannot cover the demand for electricity.

Many parts of the country experience frequent, long power outages.

In Havana in August, controlled power outages of four hours every three days were introduced in "solidarity" with the rest of the country - in practice they have been less predictable of late.

Frequent power outages during the hottest season prompted mass anti-government protests in July 2021.

Florida gears up for "Ian"

The center of the hurricane has meanwhile moved further towards the US state of Florida.

"Predictions are subject to change, but for now the experts are saying this could be a very severe hurricane, life-threatening and with devastating effects," US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday.

The US hurricane center warned of a life-threatening storm surge and hurricane gusts on the west coast of Florida.

Evacuation instructions applied to 2.5 million people – numerous people fled to safety.

“Ian” is expected to hit land on Wednesday evening (local time).

The region expected to be affected by the storm has not experienced such a hurricane for around a hundred years, warned Deanne Criswell of the American Disaster Management Agency Fema.

It's important that even people who haven't lived in the southeastern state long and have little experience with hurricanes take the matter seriously.

Experts are also worried that in the past few decades, construction in the region has been getting closer and closer to the water.

Floods could damage or destroy many buildings.

Flooding and tornadoes are also to be expected in the interior of the country, the weather service said.

The US Department of Defense said more than 3,200 members of the Florida National Guard have been activated, with another 1,800 standing by if needed.

Florida has positioned soldiers, air force personnel and equipment at bases across the state in preparation for deployment to storm-hit areas, a department spokesman said in Washington.

For example, the National Guard can clear streets and help with search and rescue operations.

aar/dpa