On the morning of this Wednesday, some flooding is being recorded in low-lying areas of El Vedado due to seawater incursions along the Havana seawall associated with Hurricane Milton, which is approaching the west coast of the United States.
The Meteorology Institute and the Government of Havana have shared on their social media profiles photos showing floods that are very common in that area of the capital whenever there are tropical storms or hurricanes near the northern coast of Cuba.
However, in this case, the floods are not so much due to an excess of rain—since the downpours in the capital have been intermittent—as to the strong waves that INSMET had already predicted would disrupt the weather in the western provinces throughout today.
In the Facebook group Maravilloso Malecón, striking images of the waves at the Malecón have been shared, where vehicle circulation has been interrupted.
In addition to Havana, Hurricane Milton has generated adverse conditions in other territories of western Cuba such as Pinar del Río, Artemisa, Mayabeque, and the Isle of Youth in recent hours.
Milton -which is expected to make landfall tonight or in the early morning of this Thursday- is mainly leaving behind gusts of winds, strong swells, and intermittent showers associated with the hurricane's feeder bands.
In Pinar del Río and Havana, south winds with speeds between 40 and 50 kilometers per hour have been reported, according to report number 9 from the Meteorological Institute.
The mentioned source specified that during the early morning, gusts of up to 82 km/h were recorded in La Palma, Pinar del Río, and 72 km/h in Casablanca, Havana.
These winds are expected to persist over the next 12 to 24 hours, extending from Pinar del Río to Mayabeque.
In addition to the strong winds, the western Cuban coasts are under the influence of intense swells.
INSMET forecasted coastal flooding ranging from light to moderate from Pinar del Río to Mayabeque, including the Isle of Youth and the Canarreos archipelago.
The passage of the feeding bands associated with Milton has generated rains and thunderstorms in several locations in western Cuba.
Although these rains have not been continuous, they could intensify throughout the day, affecting some areas with heavy showers.
With maximum sustained winds that, according to the most recent report from the National Hurricane Center, are now at 250 km/h, with higher gusts, the powerful cyclone is moving northeast at a speed of 26 km/h, located about 300 kilometers north of Cape San Antonio.
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