The municipalities of Imías and San Antonio del Sur, in Guantánamo, remain cut off this Monday due to the severe flooding caused by the torrential rains associated with Hurricane Oscar.
According to official sources and reports on social media, both municipalities in the south of the province have suffered the impact of the meteorological phenomenon since Sunday afternoon, when Oscar made landfall in Guantánamo as a category 1 hurricane. It later downgraded to a tropical storm.
The First Secretary of the Party in Guantánamo, Yoel Pérez García, stated on Monday morning to the magazine "Buenos días," from local television, that the "most complex situation" is located in those two municipalities, due to the heavy rains associated with the cyclone.
“Much precipitation has fallen over those two territories, mainly in the mountains of both municipalities, and the water has fallen on the capitals of Imías and San Antonio,” the leader mentioned. “In the Caujerí Valley, 300 mm of water fell in less than three hours, which is a historical record; such a magnitude of water has never fallen before.”
The official journalist Miguel Reyes -identified on social media as Miguel Noticias- shared a video of the flooding of a clinic in Imías, stating that this municipality and San Antonio del Sur are cut off from communication.
In a later post, he specified that the “access on the bridge near the city (2 kilometers before the municipal head) is cut off” and that telephone communications with Imías and San Antonio del Sur are also interrupted.
"The government authorities, the Red Cross, teams from the Armed Forces, and MININT helped in the safeguarding of human lives," he noted.
"In the coastal municipality of San Antonio del Sur, rescue and salvage units are working hard to evacuate locals who were cut off due to intense rainfall and the rise of the Sabanalamar River and other streams, following the passage of the weather phenomenon Oscar," reported the profile "Guajira Guantanamera."
Photos and videos are circulating on social media showing the flooding in those areas. The unusual rise in river levels, including the Sabanalamar in San Antonio, has inundated communities, where water has penetrated homes and other buildings, said Alis Azahares Torreblanca, governor of Guantánamo.
"The Los Ciguatos stream, near the entrance of the municipal capital of San Antonio del Sur, has a large part of the Buena Vista neighborhood underwater. Light vehicles cannot enter the town," reported the official newspaper Venceremos on Facebook.
A user posted in the group "Revolico San Antonio del Sur" images of the state of the bridge due to the river overflowing. "This is how the Buena Vista bridge looks, so far I don't have any more news, let's hope everyone is okay," said Yurisan Yuri Díaz Fernández.
Another publication from Venceremos described that "with a good flow of water, the Yateras River flows down the Acueducto area, in the municipality of San Antonio del Sur, as a result of the rains caused by tropical storm Oscar."
In a previous post, the newspaper had reported that the most significant damage from the hurricane's passage through the province of Guantánamo had been recorded primarily in Baracoa, Imías, Maisí, and San Antonio del Sur, with extensive flooding.
Dianelbis Delfino, director of a primary school in Guantánamo, shared images of the town of Cajobabo, in Imías, showing the severe flooding caused by the rains.
"The Jojo River flooded, the baseball field, and the nearby houses. It grew like never before. My family and my neighbors are very worried, please take care. Mamita, stay strong. Take care of yourselves," he wrote in a post.
"Flooding is reported in the town center of the municipality of Imías, mainly at the Ciro Frías Cabrera Polyclinic. This situation in the eastern region of Cuba due to the climatic phenomenon Oscar is sad," stated another post from "Guajira Guantanamera," along with a video of the flooded health center.
"We do not have precise information from the authorities yet due to the same harsh weather conditions and the lack of electric power," added the note.
On social media, many people have called on the authorities for the lack of information following the impact of the cyclone in both municipalities, worried about their family members residing in those areas. Due to the lack of electricity from the general blackout affecting the country since Friday, it is unknown how the residents of the communities are doing.
Not a few claimed that precisely due to the lack of electricity and any means of communication, many locals were hardly aware of the impending hurricane passing through the region, for which they held the local leaders responsible.
According to information published this Monday on the official social media accounts of the Presidency of Cuba, there are people in flooded areas who are being evacuated with the help of the FAR and MININT, but the report did not specify in which localities of the province of Guantánamo.
The ruler Miguel Díaz-Canel ordered to "prioritize the urgent evacuation of people who have been trapped by the waters; and to conduct an immediate assessment of the damages to facilitate recovery. All support, he said, for the province of Guantánamo."
Past noon on this Monday, the Forecast Center of the Institute of Meteorology (INSMET) reported that, during the last 24 hours, numerous showers and rains were reported in the eastern region, associated with tropical storm Oscar, which became strong and intense in some localities, mainly in the provinces of Guantánamo and Holguín. In the combined network of meteorological stations and rain gauges of the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources, accumulations exceeding 100 millimeters were recorded in 11 localities, and in three of these, the records surpassed 200 millimeters.
The highest accumulations were reported at the weather station in Punta de Maisí, with 366 mm; Puriales de Caujerí, in San Antonio del Sur, with 329 mm; Jamal, in Baracoa, with 208 mm, all in Guantánamo; while at the Jagüeyes reservoir, in Banes, Holguín, 198 mm has been recorded so far (1:30 pm) when the report was issued.
It was expected that in the afternoon, Oscar would continue to weaken; however, areas of rain, showers, and thunderstorms will persist, affecting much of the eastern region, which will continue to be strong and intense in some localities and in the mountainous areas, INSMET reported.
Tropical storm Oscar will leave Cuban territory late in the afternoon or at night this Monday, through the province of Holguín.
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