A week after Hurricane Oscar devastated several municipalities in the province of Guantánamo, chilling images continue to emerge of the rescues of people trapped by the floods, including a father and his daughter who were pulled from their flooded home in Imías.
Videos shared on Facebook by the Base Business Unit (UEB) of Transportation in Imías capture the dramatic moments experienced during the rescue of a man and his seven-year-old daughter as the strong water flow continued to rise and was about to completely submerge their home.
"Thus we experienced the tragedy of Cyclone Oscar in Imías, and despite the circumstances, we transporters saved lives," the post states.
In one of the clips, a man -apparently an employee of the state company- gets out of a Kamaz truck, approaches the entrance of the house, and shouts to ask if anyone is there. Meanwhile, another man who remains in the vehicle drops an expletive and exclaims in alarm: “What is this!... Tell them not to go crazy!”
Through the vehicle's windshield, the person filming captures the turbulent waters surrounding them, which cover homes and trees in the area up to halfway, amid a heavy and relentless rain.
Tension mounts as the father and the little girl, whom he carries on his back and holds by the legs, are aided by several men to leave and cross the rushing current, with the water rising above their knees.
The screams of the little girl are chilling: “Daddy...!!”, very frightened by the danger posed by the terrifying scene in front of her. “Mommy, don’t cry,” he tries to soothe her, as he struggles to move toward the truck, holding onto the hands and arms of the makeshift rescuers.
"Don't cry, Lérica, hold on!" they call out to the girl from the truck, as she can be heard screaming again, tearfully, "Daaaad…!!!" just as she approaches the vehicle. The video cuts off after that moment.
The publication does not disclose the identities of the father and the rescued minor, nor of the men who, despite the risk to their lives, saved them; however, it is inferred that the latter are workers from the state entity.
In the hours following the onslaught of the hurricane, which made landfall on October 20, images have emerged showcasing the heroic actions of residents from the affected communities, who have risked their lives to help save others amidst the flooding that left the municipalities of Imías and San Antonio del Sur isolated.
The video capturing two brave young people in San Antonio del Sur went viral as they rescued two elderly neighbors—a woman and a man—who would not have survived to tell the tale without their help.
Many people were able to seek refuge on rooftops while they waited for the powerful storm to subside and the floods to recede, which have caused devastation and death, primarily in the municipalities of San Antonio del Sur and Imías, and also hit Baracoa and Maisí hard.
As of today, 10 days after Oscar made landfall in eastern Cuba, the government has confirmed the deaths of eight people—seven in San Antonio del Sur and one in Imías—and the disappearance of two.
However, since the authorities released the first report of fatalities, residents in communities within those municipalities have questioned the official figures, claiming that the number of deaths exceeds what has been reported and that there are dozens of missing persons.
This Wednesday, unofficial sources revealed that at least three additional people died, but due to reasons related to the false alarm regarding the breaking of the curtains at the San Antonio del Sur dam, which triggered moments of panic among the residents of that municipality last Friday.
According to the testimony of Daniel Ross Diéguez, an audiovisual producer documenting the situation of residents in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Oscar, a woman died from a hip fracture she sustained after falling while running in response to a false alarm, and two other individuals died from heart attacks. Authorities have not confirmed this information.
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