Images of the communities flooded by Hurricane Oscar in San Antonio del Sur, Guantánamo, continue to emerge, despite the fact that the weather phenomenon has been away from the island for several days.
Oscar left entire communities flooded, with the water reaching up to one meter high in some areas. The homes suffered partial or total damage, while many families lost both belongings and appliances due to the rapid rise of rivers and streams, such as Sabanalamar and Los Ciguatos.
New videos shared on the social network TikTok showcase the extent of the flooding and the impact this weather event had on the local population.
The images show how, in addition to the material damage, people were rescued and transferred to safer places.
The alarm over the arrival of this cyclone was aggravated by a widespread power outage that left large areas of Cuba without electricity for several days. This interruption affected communication and hindered evacuation and preparation efforts before the hurricane's arrival. Many families were left without access to weather information and unable to charge mobile devices to receive alerts or contact their loved ones.
Residents have criticized the lack of preparedness and the management of the government, pointing out that the absence of electricity prevented the Civil Defense from better deploying the alert systems. Despite the evacuation efforts carried out in San Antonio del Sur and Imías, where more than 15,000 people were evacuated, some residents were caught off guard by the rise of the river with no time to evacuate or seek shelter in higher buildings.
The leader Miguel Díaz-Canel declared the priority of focusing national efforts in Guantánamo for recovery. However, the magnitude of the damage, combined with economic and logistical constraints, poses a huge challenge for the region.
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