Havana/This Friday, Cuba received a fourth batch of humanitarian aid from the United States for those affected by Hurricane Melissa in the eastern region of the country, according to the Catholic organization Caritas.
This new shipment – the total value of the aid announced by Washington is valued at 3 million dollars – arrived at the international airport in the province of Holguín.
The packages are made up of 588 food packages and 585 hygiene packages, which will be distributed in communities of Cauto Cristo, in the neighboring province of Granma.
The Catholic organization noted that the donation will be delivered “gradually” through a network that includes “volunteers, parish Caritas teams, diocesans and local religious orders.”
Like previous shipments, this shipment traveled accompanied by a representation of the Archdiocese of Miami
In addition, he explained that the distribution will follow “the selection criteria according to the degree of affectation and vulnerabilities” that contemplate “single mothers with small children, older adults, people with disabilities and people with reduced or no mobility.”
Like previous shipments, this shipment traveled accompanied by a representation from the Archdiocese of Miami.
The third shipment of humanitarian assistance from the US Government arrived two days ago bound for those affected in Santiago de Cuba.
The first two donations arrived on January 14 and 16 and were delivered to communities in Holguín and Santiago, two of the five eastern areas most affected by the scourge of Melissa.
Donations have included rice, beans, oils, sugar, water purification tablets, pots, cooking utensils, blankets and flashlights.
The hurricane crossed the eastern part of the Island at the end of last October with category 3 (out of 5) on the Saffir-Simpson scale with winds of 200 kilometers per hour and rainfall of up to 400 millimeters in some parts of the country.
According to the evaluations of the Cuban Government, its impact left no fatalities, but considerable material damage to more than 116,000 homes, also 600 state medical infrastructures, more than 2,000 educational centers, some 100,000 hectares of crops and transportation, telecommunications, electricity and water supply infrastructure.
