Hurricane Melissa, category 4, is approaching landfall in the southeast of Cuba, near Chivirico, in the Santiago municipality of Guamá, with winds exceeding 200 km/h and intense rains that are already causing flooding and river flooding in Granma and Santiago de Cuba.
According to reports the agency EFEAccumulations of up to 90 mm have flooded neighborhoods such as Los Coquitos and La Alameda in the capital of Santiago, along with sea penetrations in Chivirico.
For its part, Cubadebate It is already reporting areas flooded and cut off from the rains and river flooding in several municipalities of Santiago and dams at the top, such as Charco Mono, in Palma Soriano, where more than 150 millimeters of rain had accumulated in less than an hour.
The most recent estimates predict that it will make landfall in the municipality of Guamá, in the vicinity of the town of Chivirico, and that it will leave the country between six and eight hours later, in the municipality of Banes, in Holguín.
Meanwhile, forecasts warn of up to 450 mm of rain, 8-meter waves, sudden flooding and other severe damage in the eastern part of Cuba, where authorities evacuated more than 700,000 people, suspended transportation and other activities, and secured infrastructure.
