14ymedio, Havana, 5 May 2022 — The formation of Tropical Storm Alex has already left about 300 buildings collapsed with the main impact in Havana, where 148 of these were reported as of Saturday night, according to the State newspaper Granma. At least 53 building collapses have also occurred in Pinar del Río, 32 in Mayabeque, and another 47 in Artemisa.
This has led to the evacuation of more than 8,500 people; some 7,750 were placed in the homes of relatives, and about 800 are in evacuation centers. There are also 321 affected by the interruption of electricity service in Pinar del Río and more than 450 in Havana, where there are four primary and five secondary lines that are out of service. Meanwhile, in Artemisa, there are about 116 customers without power.
On Sunday, Minister of Economy Alejandro Gil pointed out that the main damage was to housing, agriculture and electricity, with about 750 houses affected and 3,200 hectares of tobacco, sweet potato, cucumber and pumpkin crops damaged. He also said that there are 158,000 customers experiencing power outages. Minister of Energy and Mines Livan Nicolás Arronte said that about 4,487 customers in Pinar del Río and Artemisa still don’t have electricity.
The areas most affected by building collapses in Havana are in La Polar, El Fanguito and El Pentón, all very poor neighborhoods with homes made of light materials.
So far, two deaths have been reported in Havana, a 69-year-old man in Central Havana, who died as a result of a building collapse, and a 54-year-old, who drowned in Boyeros.
A third death was reported in Pinar del Río, where the lifeless body of Yosvel Cabrera Álvarez, 44 years old, who fell into a swollen creek and drowned, was found near the ESPA in the Diez de Octubre neighborhood. Since Saturday night, another person has been missing In this same neighborhood.
Heavy rains have continued to cause flooding throughout western Cuba, and weather stations reported accumulations that exceeded a foot of water.
In the early hours of the morning, authorities pointed out the formation of Tropical Storm Alex, with winds of 80 kilometers per hour and located 1,110 kilometers southwest of Bermuda. Despite the departure of the first cyclone of the hurricane season, the rains will continue to affect the island.
By Sunday, the rains are expected to be more intense in the mountainous areas and on the south coast, while in the west, it will be cloudy with some storms in the afternoon. In southeast Cuba, there will be abundant cloudiness and rain.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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