Guantánamo will evacuate 139,000 people ahead of the imminent arrival of the hurricane Melissa, of which 108,000 will seek shelter in the homes of relatives and friends.
According to the official press, 83 centers for food production and 69 schools are designated as evacuation centers.
In Baracoa, 10,000 people will remain evacuated, while the recent rains have impacted mountain roads, the sewage system, and the main bridge in the area.
In Maisí, the Boca de Jauco bridge collapsed, restricting the municipality's access by land.
"We still have time to prepare ourselves," affirmed the PCC leader in the province, Yoel Pérez García.
Hurricane Melissa
Hurricane Melissa continues to gain strength over the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea and poses a direct threat to eastern Cuba.
The system, which rapidly strengthened overnight on Saturday, reached category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale with maximum sustained winds of 220 kilometers per hour and higher gusts.
Meteorologists warned that Melissa has a well-defined eye, a sign of its high organization and the energy accumulated at its center.
At 6:00 AM, the hurricane was located at 16.3 degrees North latitude and 76.4 degrees West longitude, placing it 180 kilometers south-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 415 kilometers south of Santiago de Cuba.
Melissa continues to move slowly towards the west, at a speed of 7 kilometers per hour, which allows it to stay over very warm waters and maintain its high intensity.
Experts anticipate that the system will gradually shift to the north and northeast between Monday and Tuesday, dangerously approaching the eastern region of Cuba.
The weather report from the TVC displayed satellite images showing how the hurricane spreads extensive areas of cloud cover over the central and eastern Caribbean, with its outer bands already impacting Camagüey and the eastern provinces of the island.
The meteorological authorities warned that the influx of moisture and the feeder bands of the system will cause showers, rainfall, and thunderstorms throughout the day, especially in the eastern part of the country.
On the southern coasts of the eastern provinces, surges are expected that could intensify into strong waves as the hurricane approaches.
Northeast winds, ranging from 15 to 30 kilometers per hour, with higher gusts in coastal areas, will create waves along the northern and southern coasts of the west and center, and adverse conditions in the east.
Meteorologists reminded that the slow movement of the system and its large size make it a potentially devastating threat to the eastern region of Cuba, where preventive and evacuation measures are already being implemented.
The Meteorology Institute of Cuba warned this Sunday about the imminent strong surges in the southern seas of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, and Guantánamo, caused by the approach of the powerful hurricane Melissa, which reached category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
According to the latest Tropical Cyclone Advisory No. 12 issued by the Forecast Center, the weather phenomenon has undergone a rapid intensification process in recent hours, with sustained winds of 220 kilometers per hour and a central pressure of 944 hectoPascals.
In this regard, the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in Santiago de Cuba and president of the Provincial Defense Council, Beatriz Johnson Urrutia, issued a alert message regarding the imminent danger of Hurricane Melissa, which threatens to have a devastating impact on the eastern part of the country.
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