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The authorities in Santiago de Cuba have started the distribution of a package of rice per consumer for the month of June free of charge due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Melissa.
“In District 1, José Martí, the distribution of a package of rice per consumer free of charge began in Santiago de Cuba. Distribution will continue in the remaining districts two, three, and four. The product corresponds to the month of June, providing a total of 5 pounds,” reported on Facebook the local broadcaster CMKC Radio Revolución.
Additionally, one kilogram of rice will be provided to pregnant women throughout the province of Santiago de Cuba, and the same amount of the product will be given to children aged 1 to 6 years, but only in the capital municipality.
Consumers over 18 will also be sold 4 packs of cigarettes for the month of June, assured Lisandra Pérez, acting director of the Business Group of Commerce, to the local station.
The announcement caused discomfort among the people of Santiago due to the disparity between the provincial capital and the other municipalities.
"And what will the adults and children aged 7 and older from the other municipalities eat, because only rice will be delivered to the municipality of Santiago?" complained a user.
"Rice and cigarettes, with that people will mitigate the effects of the hurricane, give them some respect," lamented another.
"The municipality of Santiago de Cuba, as the capital, is the only one where the residents have food needs, as well as its pregnant women; the others in the province do not have such needs."
Hurricane Melissa
Hurricane Melissa continues to gain strength in the Caribbean and now has maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour, according to the latest report from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) of the United States.
The agency warned this Saturday that the system "is beginning a process of rapid intensification" and could become a major category hurricane in the coming hours, as it dangerously approaches Jamaica and eastern Cuba.
The NHC located the center of the cyclone at 16.6 degrees north and 75.5 degrees west, about 210 kilometers southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and 405 kilometers southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, moving slowly westward at 6 km/h.
The Cuban authorities issued a hurricane alert for the provinces from Camagüey to Guantánamo, due to the possibility that the system could directly impact that region in the middle of next week.
The report warns that Melissa could bring between 150 and 300 millimeters of rain to eastern Cuba, with localized accumulations of up to 450 millimeters, which would lead to flash floods and landslides.
The southern coast is also expected to experience strong waves and possible storm surges, posing a risk of seawater intrusion in low-lying areas.
Meanwhile, Jamaica and the southern part of Haiti are preparing for the direct impact of the hurricane, which is already causing heavy rains and flooding in various areas, according to reports from regional media. In the Dominican Republic, the outer bands of the system have caused flooding and power outages in communities in the southwest.
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