Cuba shakes: Hurricane Rafael and earthquakes hit island hard – News

• On Sunday morning local time, two strong earthquakes shook the southeastern part of Cuba.
• Just on Wednesday, Hurricane Rafael caused destruction and another widespread power outage in the west of the island.
• The head of state of Cuba called on people in the affected regions to stay outdoors until further notice.

After an initial quake of magnitude 5.8, there was a more severe aftershock of magnitude 6.8. According to the Cuban National Seismological Center, the epicenter was about 35 kilometers off the coast of Granma province and about 175 kilometers from the major city of Santiago de Cuba.

During the second, stronger quake, almost half an hour after the first, people ran out of their houses in panic. However, initially only landslides, damaged houses and further power outages were reported.

The nationwide power outage caused by Hurricane Rafael was only resolved in most regions of Cuba on Friday. However, many communities were still without power over the weekend, primarily because power poles need to be reinstalled and transformers repaired.

Since Wednesday, Head of State Miguel Díaz-Canel had visited several regions and districts of the capital Havana that were particularly hard hit by the hurricane and promised rapid help. Díaz-Canel called on people in the earthquake-hit region on Sunday via his X account to stay outdoors until further notice.

Protests and over ten arrests

Meanwhile, there is protest against the permanent power outages. According to state information, several people are being investigated for bodily harm, disturbing public order and damaging property.

The human rights organization Justicia 11J reported more than ten arrests in the town of Guanabacoa in eastern Havana. People had previously taken part in protests peacefully. The NGO Cubalex, based in the US city of Miami, said that eight people had been arrested in the city of Encrucijada in central Cuba.

The power grid collapsed in October after the largest of Cuba’s eight coal-fired power plants, which were considered ailing, failed. Hurricane Oscar also hit Cuba. Eight people were killed at that time.

Cuba is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. High inflation and food and medicine shortages are causing problems for the population.