On a tour of the provinces of Camagüey and Granma, the most affected by the intense rains last week, Miguel Díaz-Canel was questioned by a woman about the deplorable situation in which several families live and cited the case of a former combatant . “He is not the only one, nor is he the only vulnerable one,” the president replied in the middle of the crowd in the small town of Jiguaní.
Díaz-Canel, who arrived in the town in a helicopter, was surrounded the entire time by a large security operation. Dozens of residents of Jiguaní (Granma), one of the communities hardest hit by the floods last week, approached the place where the aircraft touched down.
In a transmission From a resident, a woman is seen speaking energetically with the president while explaining the “social case” of Dionisio Rodríguez, who “sleeps in a hammock and in a house that is falling down.” “The combatant’s family says that he has no resources,” she explains, upset.
Díaz-Canel, surrounded by his entourage and a woman taking notes, replies: “we have hundreds of combatants and we don’t have all the resources to solve everyone’s problems.” Not satisfied with the answer, the woman mentions other cases of families in vulnerable conditions. She ends her claim with the phrase, “That’s all I wanted to say,” as she steps to the side.
“We have hundreds of fighters and we don’t have all the resources to solve everyone’s problems”
The ruler continues the conversation and replies that the situation was aggravated by the floods, but that the Government has been helping and seeking resources. Again, the woman, annoyed, tells him about the case of a girl who sleeps on a wet mat. “A social worker came and said that she did not sleep there and that she could not change herself. It is disrespectful,” she said.
Meanwhile, the official press filled its front pages with the president’s visit to the affected areas where “emphasis was placed on expediting recovery tasks,” he pointed cubadebate. Neighbors also expressed “confidence and gratitude for the concern of the country’s highest leadership,” the newspaper quoted.
The national media indicate that in Jiguaní the accumulated water reached levels “never seen before” and that some families still take out their belongings to dry them during the day. In the province of Granma alone, the rains affected 57,504 people in 105 communities. The registry includes 237 homes with damage, of which 49 suffered total collapses.
The Government was harshly criticized because it took several days to declare a state of emergency due to the rains, which left six dead in the east of the Island, and where the rivers overflowed and destroyed several bridges and highways.
The Ministry of Agriculture reports the loss of 159 heads of cattle and 126 sheep, in addition to damage to 20,012 hectares of various crops. The most affected are cassava plantations, with 4,742 hectares destroyed, as well as 3,763 of squash, 1,308 of rice, 1,314 of sweet potato, 965 of plantain and 589 of cowpea beans.
According to the Institute of Hydraulic Resources, in the first 10 days of June in the eastern region rainfall accumulated 211.3 millimeters, equivalent to 141% higher than the historical average.
⚠️⚠️ Díaz Canel visits Jiguaní, a town devastated by the rains of the last week… this lady approaches in the crowd and tells her some truths… this lady has more merit than all the bureaucrats that surround her! #Cuba pic.twitter.com/RuVm6Szqzr
— Mag Jorge Castro?? (@mjorgec1994) June 16, 2023
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