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The Ministry of the Interior released the first images of the rescue carried out on the night of this Tuesday and the early morning of Wednesday in El Cobre, municipality of Santiago de Cuba.
According to the statement from that regime organization, the operation successfully rescued several individuals under adverse conditions.
The footage, released later, confirms the safe extraction of those affected and shows the subsequent reunion with the rescue teams.
The meeting between the rescued and the rescuers took place on the Camino de la Mina de El Cobre, where, now more at ease, the survivors recounted their experience.
The operation involved forces from the Fire Brigade and the Special Brigade, who coordinated the arrival at the extraction point and the transfer to a safe area, according to the official statement.
The authorities did not immediately specify the number of people rescued nor provided further details about their medical condition, pending a complete assessment of the incident.
In the early hours of this Wednesday, torrential rains and landslides caused a critical situation in the town of El Cobre, in the province of Santiago de Cuba.
According to official reports and social media posts, 17 people —including children and the elderly— were trapped after a slope collapsed in Loma del Cimarrón, an area affected by the sudden rise of the river flowing through the town.
Rescue and salvage teams from the Ministry of Interior and Civil Defense have been working in the area since dawn, but their efforts have been hindered by the flooded terrain, landslides, and disrupted access routes.
The disastrous journey of Melissa
Catholic Church authorities confirmed this Wednesday the death of one person during the devastating passage of the hurricane through the town of El Cobre.
Father Rogelio Dean Puerta, pastor and rector of the National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre, Patroness of Cuba, reported that, "although the material damages are substantial, human life has been preserved, and so far, only one fatality is known in the area, an elderly person."
The priest did not identify the deceased person or the circumstances surrounding their death. So far, authorities have not confirmed the death of any citizen due to the hurricane.
The Archdiocese of Santiago de Cuba reproduced information shared in an audio by the priest Dean Puerta, who described the bleak situation left by the powerful hurricane in El Cobre, where, he revealed, many families lost their homes and all their belongings.
The note from the Archdiocese lamented that the devastating passage of Melissa through eastern Cuba left “scenes of profound destruction in the town of Cobre, where the spiritual heart of the nation rises: the National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Charity of Cobre, Patroness of Cuba.”
Despite the implementation of preventive measures, such as protecting each of the stained glass windows of the Sanctuary with "securely embedded" aluminum structures, the strength of the wind "exceeded all expectations" and caused multiple damages to the temple.
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