Hurricane Rafael made landfall in Cuba on Wednesday as a powerful Category 3 hurricane, shortly after powerful winds knocked out the country's power grid. Forecasters warned Rafael could bring life-threatening storm surges, winds, and flash floods to western swaths of the island after it knocked out power and dumped rain on the Cayman Islands and Jamaica the day before. The storm was located 40 miles south-southwest of Havana on Wednesday, the AP reports. It had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph and was moving northwest at 14 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Cuba already was struggling with devastating blackouts while recovering from another hurricane two weeks ago that killed at least six people in the eastern part of the island. On Wednesday, the Cuban government issued an alert for the incoming storm while crews in Havana worked to fortify buildings and clear scraps from seaside areas in anticipation of flooding. Classes and public transport were suspended on parts of the island, and authorities canceled flights in and out Havana and Varadero. Thousands of people in the west of the island were evacuated as a prevention measure.
Silvia Pérez, a 72-year-old retiree living in a coastal area of Havana, was among those scrambling to prepare. As neighbors moved appliances and other furniture from ground floor homes, Pérez stocked up on water and food. "This is a night I don't want to sleep through, between the battering air and the trees," Pérez said. "I'm scared for my friends and family." Forecasters expected the storm to weaken over Cuba before emerging in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane. The US State Department issued an advisory for Cuba on Tuesday afternoon, offering departure flights to nonessential staff and American citizens and advising others to "reconsider travel to Cuba."
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