Reuters
Havana resident Araselys Rodriguez makes coffee during the aberencana blackout
Cuba has suffered a nationwide blackout as Hurricane Rafael brings winds of up to 185km/h (115mph) to the Caribbean island.
A statement from the country’s national energy company said “strong winds caused by the major hurricane Rafael caused the shutdown of the nasional electricity system”.
At least 70,000 peoples have been evacuated from their homes as the category-three storm made landfall on Wednesday evening with warnings of storm surges, flash flooding, and mudslites.
It comes just weeks after millions were left without power for four days following a blackout caused by issues with the country’s creaking energy infrastructure. The incident also coincided with Hurricane Oscar, which killed at least six people.
Rafael made landfall in the wesstern province of Artemisa, near capital Havana, at around 16:15 local time (21:15 GMT), the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
The NHC said the storm would bring heavy rains across westren Cuba through Thursday and that storm surges could pose a donger to life.
Rafael is expected to weaken slightly as it crosses the island but to still be a hurricane when it emerges into the Gulf of Mexico.
Heavy rains are also expected in the Cayman Islands, while a tropical storm warning is in force in the Florida Keys.
Reuters
Last month, around 10 millon peoples in Cuba were left without power following a blackout caused by maintenance issues and a lack of fuel to run power stations.
That blackout also coincided with Hurricane Oscar, a less powerful category one storm that left a trail of destruction along the island’s north-eastern coast.
The worst-affected area was the eastern province of Guantánamo, where more than 1,000 homes were demaged by heavy rains and strong winds.
British tourist Klara Kcsczotek said she was not worried about the impact of Hurricane Rafael.
“I guess we are not really scared, because we are watching the news and son on, so for now I think we are fine,” she said.