The Provincial Transport Company of Havana announced on Wednesday that the ferry service in Regla has been suspended due to adverse weather conditions caused by Hurricane Helene, which is classified as a Category 1 storm.
According to the statement, the suspension of the service took effect at 8:30 AM on September 25, 2024, and will continue as long as the weather conditions persist.
The decision was made as a preventive measure to ensure the safety of passengers and protect the integrity of the vessel due to the heavy rains and worsening weather conditions affecting the Cuban capital.
This Tuesday, the Maritime Administration of Cuba (AMC) also suspended navigation in the Gulf of Batabanó due to adverse hydrometeorological conditions caused by Hurricane Helene.
The measure affects the ports of Batabanó, Nueva Gerona, and Cayo Largo del Sur and came into effect at 00:00 on September 24.
In the province of Pinar del Río, the area in Cuba most severely affected by Hurricane Helene, wind gusts and flooding have been reported.
The hurricane now has maximum sustained winds of 130 km/h and is moving northwest at 17 km/h, indicating a slight increase in its translational speed.
According to the latest report from the National Hurricane Center (NHC), at 10:00 a.m. local time, Helene was located 135 km north-northeast of Cozumel, Mexico, and about 810 km south-southwest of Tampa, Florida.
The hurricane, expected to hit the United States near Tallahassee, is already battering the Mexican peninsula of Yucatán and western Cuba with hurricane-force winds.
The effects will be felt along the Florida coast in the coming hours, even though the center of the storm won’t make landfall until Thursday.
The NHC warns that Helene could strengthen to a Category 3 or higher by Thursday.
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