HAVANA – The Cuban government has issued a hurricane warning for northern coastal areas as Hurricane “Oscar” approaches October 20. The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) has forecast that the hurricane will make landfall in Cuba on Sunday night.
The NHC has extended the hurricane warning to include the provinces of Holguin and Guantanamo. Similarly, the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands, which are part of the British overseas territories, have also issued hurricane warnings as “Oscar” moves westward.
As of the latest update, “Oscar” was located approximately 115 kilometers west of Grand Turk Island and about 590 kilometers east of Camagüey, Cuba. The hurricane is carrying maximum sustained winds of 136 kilometers per hour. The NHC warned that heavy rains from the storm could trigger flash floods and landslides across eastern Cuba, particularly in the Sierra Maestra mountain range.
Power Outages Impact Large Parts of Cuba
In addition to the looming hurricane, Cuba has been grappling with nationwide power outages, which have left large parts of the island in darkness. The government reported that it has restored electricity to nearly 20% of the population following two major blackouts in the past 24 hours.
Lazaro Guerra, a senior Cuban electricity official, explained that while efforts to restore power are ongoing, the process is slow. He warned that accelerating the work could lead to further outages, and as of now, it remains unclear whether full power restoration will be achieved by the end of the day. Nevertheless, officials are optimistic about making progress.
In Havana, the majority of the city remains without power as of Saturday evening, while the nation braces for the potential impacts of Hurricane “Oscar” in the coming hours. (TNA)
