A resident of Old Havana expressed her outrage over a partial collapse that occurred due to Hurricane Rafael, believing it could have been prevented with a timely demolition, as the building has been vacant for a long time.
"No one has lived there for over 40 years; the owner of that house lives just around the corner, 'in the area,' and they haven't come to demolish it yet," the woman noted in statements reported by Cubanet.
The complainant garnered the admiration of many internet users, as she repeatedly told the camera to record her, stating that she was not afraid of reprisals for her complaint.
"Put it on, show me my face because I’m not afraid of anyone. Take my face out there; I'm not afraid of anyone because they are just shameless and, well, they aren’t here to solve anything," she exclaimed.
"I don’t trust anyone, so you can take my face," he concluded, standing close to the debris strewn in the middle of the street.
The partially damaged property is located at 831 Compostela Street, between Paula and Merced, and is just one of many that have suffered varying degrees of damage after the winds and rains associated with Hurricane Rafael.
Another one of those collapses occurred on Santiago Street, between Saludo and Jesús Peregrino, in Centro Habana.
More than 460 collapses just in Havana.
So far, at least 461 landslides, either total or partial, have been recorded in Havana due to the impact of the powerful Hurricane Rafael, according to a preliminary report released by authorities in the Cuban capital this Thursday.
"Havana was heavily impacted," stated the provincial governor, Yanet Hernández, during a press conference, noting that the damage to homes and other structures included fallen walls, stairs, and detached light coverings. However, she did not disclose the total number of collapses that occurred.
Cuban authorities have not reported any fatalities in the provinces that experienced the most damage from the hurricane—Artemisa, Havana, and Mayabeque—where more than four million people live, over two million of whom reside in the capital.
Hurricane Rafael, the second to strike Cuba in just over 15 days, has dealt another severe blow to the country, which is grappling with a shattered economy due to the deep crisis it has been facing for at least the past five years.
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