The Civil Defense troops in Holguín have begun to evacuate the peasants residing in the vicinity of Pinares de Mayarí, where a fire has been out of control since this Saturday. This is the second major disaster to hit the province in less than a month, coinciding with the dry season.
Four days have passed since the fire began near Vaquería 15 and the Mensura-Piloto National Park. In less than 24 hours it managed to spread over an area of 12 kilometers, driven by the speed of the winds (between 35 and 40 kilometers per hour this Saturday). The action of the wind has also prevented the helicopters of the Armed Forces from spraying water on the area. Given the natural conditions, the authorities have focused on preventing the flames from crossing the road that leads to the Villa Pinares de Mayarí hotel.
Despite the magnitude of the fire, of the 600 residents of the communities of Vivero 2, Pueblo Nuevo and La Mensura, only 18 have been evacuated. The situation of the rest of the residents of the area is not, on trial of the president of the Municipal Defense Council, Dagmar Abad, so dangerous.
To reduce the risk of programming the flames, the official added, it has been decided to cut the grasslands and trees, as well as “cool” the houses in the area of La Mensura and the Integral Research Station of the Mountain.
In the networks it is observed how the flames advance with more impetus over the mountainous area, with a reddish sky due to the excess smoke in the air
The government has not yet revealed how many crops have been affected by the flames, but confirms considerable damage to several hectares whose vegetation consists of groves of Cuban pine and coffee trees. The authorities recognized that the fire had further strengthened this Monday, with the threat of spreading to the coffee farms and a sector of the natural park.
In videos Shared on social networks by the residents of Pinares de Mayarí, it is observed how the flames advance more vigorously over the mountainous area, with a reddish sky due to excess smoke in the air. Fire, ranger and military commandos continue to operate in the area.
The incident occurs two weeks after another fire consumed more than 1,000 hectares of the mountainous area of El Prado, also in the municipality of Mayarí. In this case, the flames were active from January 26 to February 10.
The Ministry of the Interior and the Cuban Ranger Corps reported that the island has suffered 80 forest fires in January of this year alone, an alarming figure. The most affected provinces have been Pinar del Río, Artemisa, Holguín, Camagüey and the special municipality of Isla de Juventud.
Argelio Fernández, director of Hydrology and Hydrogeology of the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources, warned to cubadebate that the Cuban population will face more complex months this 2023 due to a severe drought caused by a drastic reduction in rainfall, a situation that already affects almost 270,000 Cubans, whose water supply has been affected.
The dry period extends from November to April, when water is extracted from the reservoirs to supply the population. But the Government reports that in 134 municipalities the accumulated rainfall is less than 50% of the average capacity of the dams, located mostly in Pinar del Río, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Ciego de Ávila, Camagüey, Las Tunas and Granma.
Hugo Ramos López, a specialist in Hydraulic Resources, warned that the 88 reservoirs in the country are at a capacity of 54% of their useful filling, and 18 of them report less than 25% storage. The province most affected by the shortage will be Guantánamo, a province of 59,000 inhabitants.
As a consequence, 62% of the Cuban territory faces a serious water deficit this 2023. According to the Institute of Meteorology, 13% of the Island will go through a severe to extreme drought, 19% will be moderate and 30% weak.
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