The Cuban government anticipates the evacuation or protection of 649,487 people in the five eastern provinces of the island due to the imminent direct impact of Hurricane Melissa, the country’s Presidency reported this Sunday.

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The Institute of Meteorology (Insmet) forecasts that the hurricane, now a category 4 (out of 5) on the Saffir-Simpson scale, will make landfall in Cuba on Tuesday night and travel from south to north through the country for 12 hours.

In a meeting of the National Defense Council, the President of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, stressed that “the fundamental thing is the protection of the population” and ordered “the evacuation of all people who are downstream from dams, micro-dams and in any area that is subject to flooding.”

He also urged maintaining “constant communication” with the residents, using “all possible means, especially in the midst of the country’s electrical situation.”

“We have to work intensely for what remains of Sunday and Monday. If we work for the worst-case scenario, we are guaranteeing peace of mind in this whole matter. This event will enter at night or early morning, and what we don’t do now, we lose later,” he stated.

He also called for paying “special attention” to the vulnerable population and to ensuring primary health services and the epidemiological surveillance system.

The presidents of the Defense Councils of the provinces declared in the “alert” phase reported by videoconference on the work they are doing to protect people and vital resources, the preparation of evacuation centers and food preparation, as well as communication through various channels.

In the provinces of Santiago de Cuba and Las Tunas, 258,579 and 72,000 people will be protected, respectively. In addition, 110,000 residents in Granma, 69,000 in Holguín and 139,914 in Guantánamo will be evacuated.

In total, about 7% of the Cuban population is on alert for Melissa, according to official figures.

The director of Insmet, Celso Pazos, specified that Melissa is a hurricane of “great intensity,” accompanied by winds exceeding 200 km/h and intense rains that represent one of the “most dangerous” factors of this system, which will generate flooding upon its arrival on the southeastern Cuban coast.

The foreseeable impact of Melissa on Cuba has as its closest antecedent the tropical storm Imelda, which at the end of last September also hit its eastern region with heavy rains, leaving two dead, several thousand displaced, floods, landslides, overflowing rivers and collapses of homes, among other damages.

Cuban meteorologists have warned that the current cyclone season in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea, in effect from June 1 to November 30, will be “very active,” with the possible formation of eight hurricanes.

According to their forecasts, the probability that at least one hurricane will originate and intensify in the Caribbean is high (75%), while it is 50% that one of Atlantic origin will penetrate the Caribbean Sea and affect the island.

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