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Havana braces itself for Hurricane Ike’s onslaught

— Photo: AFP

Direct hit: A wave hits the waterfront in Baracoa, eastern Cuba, on Sunday.

CAMAGUEY (Cuba): Hurricane Ike roared across Cuba on Monday, tearing off roofs and sending waves crashing into buildings, as 9,00,000 Cubans fled to shelters or higher ground and Havana residents in historic buildings prepared for a direct hit.

Ike made landfall as a fearsome category-3 hurricane on Sunday night after raking the Bahamas and worsening floods in Haiti, which have already killed 319 people. It was expected to tear across almost the entire length of Cuba, and then enter the Gulf of Mexico with Texas and Louisiana among the likely targets. “We are preparing for a strong hit,” said Cuba’s Vice-President Carlos Lage. Cuba’s National Meteorological Institute said heavy rains were soaking the entire eastern half of the island of 11 million, and dangerous storm surges were threatening communities along most of the north-eastern coast.

State TV earlier broadcast images of the storm surge washing over coastal homes in Baracoa. It said huge waves surged over buildings as tall as five stories and dozens of dwellings were damaged beyond repair. A tally of sporadic reports from six of the eight eastern provinces affected indicated at least 9,00,000 people had evacuated, and the former President, Fidel Castro, released a statement calling on Cubans to heed security measures to ensure no one dies. Cuba historically has successfully carried off massive evacuations before hurricanes, sparing countless lives.

Ike had weakened to a category-2 storm with top sustained winds near 155 km per hour and forecasters expected further weakening as it moved over central Cuba on Monday. Winds reaching as high as 260 km per hour damaged homes in Holguin province. Forecasters said Ike would likely hit Havana, the capital of 2 million people, early on Tuesday.

Morning skies were only cloudy, but schools were closed and domestic flights were suspended. In Camaguey, municipal workers boarded up banks and restaurants before heavy rain started falling. People waited in bread lines at each of the numerous government bakeries around town as families hoarded supplies before the storm. — AP

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