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The Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Washington maintains “close contact” with the governments of Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the Bahamas to coordinate response and assistance following the devastating impacts of Hurricane Melissa, without mentioning Cuba among the interlocutors.
The legislator assured that rescue and response teams are heading to the affected areas, along with vital supplies, and expressed his “prayers” for the people of the Caribbean.
Rubio shared his message on X, where he listed the four countries with which —according to him— the United States is coordinating actions in response to the emergency.
Your post arrives at a time of intense cyclonic activity in the region and emphasizes cooperation with neighboring nations severely affected by Melissa, while avoiding any mention of the Island.
In parallel, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported at 2:00 PM that Melissa was exhibiting maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 km/h), moving northeast at 15 mph (24 km/h) with an estimated minimum central pressure of 974 mb.
The warning kept areas under hurricane alert in the southeast and central Bahamas, as well as in the Cuban provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantánamo, Holguín, and Las Tunas. Additionally, tropical storm warnings were in effect for Haiti, Camagüey (Cuba), and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The NHC report emphasized that hurricane-force winds extended up to 40 miles (65 km) from the center, while tropical storm winds reached up to 185 miles (295 km).
He also warned of life-threatening rains: for the east of Cuba, total accumulations of 10 to 20 inches, with peaks of 25 inches in mountainous areas; for the Bahamas, 5 to 10 inches, with a risk of flash flooding; and for Haiti and the Dominican Republic, significant additional rainfall with landslides.
A storm surge of 4 to 7 feet was also expected in the southeastern Bahamas, along with the possibility of minor coastal flooding on the northern coast of eastern Cuba and in Haiti.
Against this backdrop, Rubio's message is framed within the critical response phase to a storm that continues to generate dangerous waves and marine currents across much of the Caribbean.
So far, Cuban authorities have not reported any request for assistance from the U.S. government, even though the devastation in eastern Cuba is severe.
In 2022, the government of Cuba requested emergency assistance from the administration of Joe Biden to address the devastating damage caused by Hurricane Ian as it passed through the island.
Previously, they had sought technical assistance from Washington in response to the devastating fire at the Matanzas Super Tanker Base.
In other instances when Cuba has faced hurricanes, the United States has offered humanitarian assistance, but Cuba has declined it.
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