The hurricane Melissa struck the province of Holguín fiercely this Wednesday, leaving severe flooding, material damage, and isolated communities in its wake, after impacting eastern Cuba as a Category 3 storm and then degrading to Category 2 while moving northeast toward the Bahamas.
According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC) of the United States, "at 8:00 a.m. (Miami time), the eye of Melissa was located at 20.6°N and 75.7°W, about 70 kilometers northwest of Guantánamo and 335 kilometers south of the central Bahamas, with maximum sustained winds of 165 km/h and higher gusts."
The U.S. agency warned that the cyclone “will continue to cause torrential rains and dangerous sea swells, especially in the mountainous areas of eastern Cuba and along the northern coast.”
Streets turned into rivers in Holguín
On social media, neighbors, users, activists, and both official and independent communicators have shared testimonies that reflect the magnitude of the impact in the province.
Lázaro Manuel Alonso described the images coming from the territory as "overwhelming."
José Raúl Gallego shared a video showing the rising water of the river near the Catholic church in Banes. "Rising water of the river that runs near the Catholic church of Banes, Holguín. I am told that approximately 30 meters from the site there is a bridge built before '59 that withstood the hurricane," he wrote on Facebook.
Idelisa Diasniurka Salcedo Verdecia shared images of flooding in Cueto on her profile.
From the city, a user known as Leidi Combos Holguín reported: “This is how we are on Progreso Street in Holguín, Cuba, since around 6 this morning... a lot of wind, and if it keeps up like this, we are going to have significant material losses, and God forbid there are any human ones.”
In Mayarí, Sayuri Martínez shared a video with the message: “How sad what my town of Mayarí experienced, stay strong brothers #CubaUnida #hurricaneMelissa”.
Also from Sagua de Tánamo, Willian Martínez Lobaina shared images of the phenomenon's impact: “Hurricane Melissa striking hard in Sagua de Tánamo, Holguín province, Cuba.”
Sagua de Tánamo among the hardest hit municipalities
The municipality of Sagua de Tánamo, located in the province of Holguín, has been one of the most affected areas in eastern Cuba following Hurricane Melissa. The overflowing of the Sagua River has caused severe flooding in several sectors of the region, where residents report that the water has reached historic levels, flooding homes, businesses, and main roads. Some residents have had to seek refuge in higher areas.
Severe damage in eastern Cuba
The National Hurricane Center stated that "Melissa has lost some of the extreme intensity with which it made landfall —when it was a category 3— but still has a hurricane-force wind field of 45 km around the center and tropical storm winds extending up to 295 km."
The Provincial Defense Council of Holguín urged the population to “not attempt to cross rivers or flooded areas,” while rescue and salvage brigades, along with medical personnel and volunteers, remain deployed in several municipalities to assist those affected.
According to the weather report, “Melissa, which on Tuesday had winds of nearly 300 km/h as a historic Category 5 hurricane, is gradually moving away from Cuba, but leaves behind catastrophic rainfall, structural damage, and power outages in much of the eastern part of the country.”
The system continues to advance towards the southeastern Bahamas, although the effects of the storm remain in Holguín, Santiago de Cuba, Granma, Guantánamo, and Las Tunas, where heavy rains and the risk of landslides persist.
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