hello...does anyone post here?

hello...My name is Melissa. Im a 21yrold college student that dwells in Columbus, Ohio. I'm very interested in Cuban history/politics, and the Cuban people, as well as the future of the Cuban people, and what they want.( i.e. keeping the US government out of Cuba!!)

Hurricane Updates

Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2004 9:00 AMSubject: Mesa Redonda on Ivan and its Impact(Any idea that the Cuban authorities attempt to hidethe extent of the damage is belied by Susan Hurlich'sreport here. If anything, they seem to tell too muchof the story and some may be overwhelmed by the manydetails. Nevertheless, it's pleasing to be able toscan this material, particularly by readers who maybe familiar with the specific places mentioned.)

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From: Susan Hurlich Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2004 8:15 AMSubject: Mesa Redonda on Ivan and its ImpactLast night there was another excellent Round Table on Ivanand its aftermath. Again, it's long - but provides evenmore insight into how Cuba's Civil Defense system works toprotect lives and economic means.Now we're anxiously waiting for the official report fromCivil Defense on the damages done, as well as on prioritiesfor assistance.We should also remember that part of our assistance to Cubais also educating people in our own countries about thespecial reality and values of Cuba, as well as about thenegative impact of U.S. policies. For instance, a number ofonline letters and comments have mentioned that due to U.S.measures, Cuba is excluded from receiving assistance fromthe Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank and theCommonwealth. We need to challenge these policies and worktowards their change.I think that some of the information included in theseRound Tables can help us talk about not only policies andpractices WITHIN Cuba, but also can help us make the casethat Cuba is an INSTRUCTIVE EXAMPLE from which our owncountries can well learn.With warm regards,Susan

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13 September 04 - Mesa Redonda on Hurricane Ivan andPreliminary Comments on its Impact (televised onCubavision, Canal Educative, Radio Rebelde and Radio HabanaCuba)Dr. Jose Rubiera, jefe, Depto de Pronosticos, Instituto deMeterologia (Dr. Jose Rubiera, head, Weather ForecastDepartment, Meterological Institute) Hurricane Ivan is thefifth strongest hurricane to hit the Caribbean area, andwhile over Cuba, the strongest winds of its trajectory wereover Cabo San Antonio in the far western tip of Pinar delRio.Hurricane Ivan is also one of five category 5 hurricanes tohave hit Cuba. The first (recorded) category 5 hurricanewas in 1924, which had sustained winds of 295 kph and aminimum central pressure of 916 MB. Then there was the 1932hurricane which hit Santa Cruz de Sur and had sustainedwinds of 260 kph, a minimum central pressure of 892 andocean surges that were six metres high. In 1952, HurricaneFox (?), with sustained winds of about 280 kph, hit CayoJuallo de Oest, then Santa Clara as a category 4 cycloneand finally Matanzas as a category 2 cyclone. On 12 October1988, Gilbert hit the city of Havana, Cienfuegos and Pinardel Rio.As for the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the Caribbean,in descending order of strength, Hurricane Gilbert (1988)is the strongest Atlantic tropical cyclone of record. Thencomes a cyclone in 1935 (1933?), Camille (Camila in Cuba)(1969), Mitch (1998) and Ivan.Cuba was lucky with Ivan, as only the right hand side,rather than the entire hurricane, entered the country. Thisis why the impact wasn't as bad as it might have been. Thewestern part of Pinar del Rio spent about nine or ten hoursunder hurricane winds. This was when the eye passed Cuba atCabo de San Antonio. Technically, only the eyewall touchedCuban land, not the eye.As to how strong the sustained winds actually were thatthumped Cabe de San Antonio, as there's no registry of thespeed, we can only make an estimate. The head of themeteorological station in Sandino, who has a lot ofexperience, estimated that sustained winds were 200 kphwith 260 kph gusts. A second person, who also hasexperience, made the same estimate.Perhaps our viewers won't be happy to hear this, butTropical Storm Jeanne (#11), located 260 km southwest ofSan Juan (Puerto Rico), has sustained winds of 95 kph, aminimum central pressure of 998 MB and is moving at 17 kph.By the time it hits Puerto Rica, it could be a category 1hurricane, and then it may go to The Bahamas and then toFlorida. At the moment, it offers no threat to Cuba.People have asked how much rain fell with Ivan. INRH saidthat in some areas, it appears that 300+ mm fell. But in ahurricane, rain falls in a horizontal direction because ofthe winds. Therefore, one doesn't normally "measure" therain from a hurricane as it's hard to measure accurately,and it might be that instead of only 300 mm, the realamount of rain that fell is 400 or 500 mm. Charley came byalmost dry, but Ivan had lots of rain. In the city ofHavana, the most rain that fell was 74 mm in Santiago delas Vegas. In Bauta, some 114 mm of rain fell.Within the different centres of the Instituto Meterologicoin Cuba, there are radars and equipment that dates from theearly 1970s. This is the case at the stations atGuanahacabibes and on Isle de la Juventud.When it comes to measuring the speed of a hurricane'ssustained winds, our stations do this manually.Internationally, a wind measurement is based on one aone-minute interval. Here in Cuba, we base sustained windspeeds on a ten minute period of time. This is for our ownuse at the Instituto Meterologico and then we convert it toa one minute measurement. But the international standard ofusing one minute gets higher numbers, as it can include agust rather than a longer average.Randy Alonso, program moderator: A total staff of 1,100people work at Cuba's meteorological institutes, which arelocated around the country.In the Caribbean, Ivan is rated as the fourth most seriouskiller in the region after Mitch and two others. When ahurricane has been unusually destructive, it's name is"retired". From 1978 on, the names for hurricanes are basedon the main languages used in the wider area of its birthand growth. For instance, in the Atlantic region, namescome from either Spanish, English or French, and they'redecided upon collectively in an international committee.Televised local journalists' reports with footage ofdifferent locations where Ivan passesIn Pinar del Rio, the meteorological centre is located inthe most western part of the province. Right after Ivan'spassage, some provincial journalists went to Sandino andMarina Gaviota (a tourist-related chain), one of the largercommunities located northeast of Guanahacabibes Peninsula.Here, winds were very strong, affecting very criticallylocal citrus plantations. One of the journalists also saidthat some 27-year-old coconut trees, which had survived2002's Hurricane Lili and were favorites of chiefmeteorologist Jose Rubiera, had been knocked down by Ivan.>From Sandino, provincial journalists went west to LaBajada, located about 50 km further west on the peninsulaitself, in Bahia de Corrientes. In this community there are24 houses. The unedited images that were filmed fortelevision show that the road in this area has beencompletely destroyed, carried away by winds that have justleft chunks behind. The majority of houses are damaged,many seriously, and some have completely disappeared. Onthose that are still standing (in part or whole), roofs areeither damaged or completely gone. Before this communitywas evacuated, residents had tied rope to their roofs totry to protect them and prevent them from being lifted off.But sustained winds in this area reached 200 kph withhigher gusts. In addition to penetrations from the ocean,there were also huge ocean surges. Water marks on standingwalls show that the level reached at least a metre or soabove the ocean's normal level. Toilets were wrenched fromtheir foundations and left lying in the sands. Amazingly,one skinny little white female dog with black markings wasstill alive. She had been left behind by her owner whocouldn't find her, and who hoped that somehow she wouldsurvive. When the owner returned the next day to see whatIvan had done to her home, she found her dog standing infront of what remained of her house, and began crying. Whenthe film crew arrived, the dog was still standing there andwouldn't leave.The journalists then tried to reach Cabo de San Antionio 59km further west of La Bajada. But there were too manyobstacles on the road: trees, stones, etc. The small groupfrom Marina Gaviota decided to keep trying, as there is asmall meteorological center at the cape as well as a smallmarine. Wind measuring equipment had been left behind atthe center, which might provide a confirmation of estimatedsustained winds for this area.>From La Bajada, provincial journalists went to IsabelRubio, 16 km east of Sandino. Early Monday evening, at 6pm,BEFORE Ivan's eye had passed Cuba, there were alreadyelectric cables and posts on the ground. When they returnedafter Ivan's passage, there were even more cables and postsdown.In the small community of Valle San Juan, located about 15km east of La Bajada, new electric posts and cables hadbeen installed over the summer to bring electricity to thelocal area. (The plan was to "turn them on" sometime duringSeptember.) After Ivan passed, the posts are all down.Throughout the western part of the province of Pinar delRio, oranges, lemons and grapefruit have been knocked offthe trees and many of the trees are down. In towns such asCortes (located in the Ensenada de Cortes), Isabel Rubio(located inland) and Manuel Lazo (located between Sandinoand Valle San Juan), filmed images show lots of electriccables and posts down.Vegetation on the Guanahacabibes Peninsula (1,015 sq km),in which Parque Nacional de Guanahacabibes is located,suffered great damage. One journalists said that it lookedas if a fire had passed. Many trees fell down. Fauna wasalso in very little evidence. During their entire visit,provincial journalists saw only two parrots, two CubanTrogans (the tocororo, which is the national bird of Cuba)and one small hummingbird. They also met a representativeof CITMA (Ministry of Science, Technology and theEnvironment) in La Bajada who was beginning a survey ofParque Nacional de Guanahacabibes to determine the extentof damages to flora and fauna.The next stop was Boca de Galafra, a fishing communitylocated about 40 km from Sandina and three km from PlayaBoca de Galafre on the Ensenada de Cortes on the southerncoast of Pinar del Rio. In October 2002, this area had beendevastated by Hurricanes Lili and Isidore, which followedin rapid succession. Ivan is thus the third hurricane forPinar del Rio in two years. At that time, many houses weredamaged and had to be completely rebuilt. It was good newsto find that many of the homes that were rebuilt after Liliwere still standing and had apparently suffered littlestructural damage. But other wooden houses which survivedthe two earlier hurricanes were destroyed by Ivan. In thisarea, penetrations of the ocean went inland as much as 100metres (and in some areas it was more), but afterwardsdrained quickly into the cove, after depositing rocks allover the two-lane highway.At Cortes, located further down the western side of thecove, the ocean penetrated inland between 60-100 metres.Although houses show lots of damage to walls and roots,many of the structures are still standing. Since earlyMonday morning, residents have been cleaning up. Initiallythey were using hatchets to clear away fallen trees, butlater a brigade arrived with electric saws. Some electriccables are also down in this area.Lt.Col. Luis Angel Macareno Veliz, Estado Mayor de laDefensa Civil (Lt.Col. Luis Angel Macareno Veliz, NationalCivil Defense) Although it's still too early to giveprecise data of damages - today, Civil Defense specialistsbegan to do a detailed inventory of damages in Pinar delRio - the filmed images of these journalists give an ideaof the extent of damages. What I'd like to talk about arethe main measures that were taken by Civil Defensestructures to protect lives and economic means.-around the country, the Civil Defense structure included2,461 Control Points (organos de Direccion) of which 103are Control Stations (puestos de Direccion) -2,492evacuation centres were established -1,725 centres preparedfood for these evacuation centres -206,122 people weremobilized to work with the Civil Defense structure of whom6,103 were from the Ministry of Defense. To carry out theirwork, they had 14,916 vehicles of different kinds, 1,330engineering equipment (machinery) and 2,045 devices forcommunication -1,898,396 people (representing more than 15%of the country's population) were evacuated, of whom416,123 went to evacuation centres and 1,471,058 (78%) wentto the homes of friends, neighbors or relatives. As well,8,026 tourists were moved to installations in safer areasand 359,644 boarding school students were taken home. Intotal, 2,266,066 people were protected through differentkinds of evacuation procedures. -there was no loss of life-2,000 medical and sanitation brigades (Brigadas Medicas ySanitarias) were established in areas of greatest risk, inevacuation centres and in food elaboration centres (Centrosde Elaboracion de Alimentos) -200,000 tonnes of food (fromthe ration system) were protected -30,000 audiovisual unitswere protected (many of these were from schools; as well, ahuge number of solar panels were taken down from ruralschools and health clinics and put in safe storage)-1,898,160 animals were protected (ie, moved fromvulnerable areas to safer areas) -1,200 green houses (casasde cultivo), irrigation systems and grinding machines weredismantled and stored in protected locationsThe important role of ham radio operators within the CivilDefense system must also be mentioned. In a number ofinstances, they were our only means of communication withcommunities that had lost communication facilities.Another interesting feature of Hurricane Ivan is that it'sthe first time in the history of Cuba that, in someinstances, we've moved from a higher phase of alert to alower phase. The four phases we use in Civil Defense areInformative, Alert, Alarm and Normal/Recuperative. BecauseIvan sometimes seemed to be coming in a more northerlydirection, and then changed to a more northwesterlydirection, and then changed back again, in severalinstances the "status" of a population went fromInformative to Alert back to Informative.During this hurricane more than any other, the disciplineand solidarity of the people was outstanding. People werevery willing to be evacuated. People also showed atremendous level of voluntary spirit to spontaneously takeactions to protect things. For instance, at some schools,the local community decided to take the asbestos roofs downand store them in a safe area.There was also a lot of coordination among many differentstructures. In conclusion, we can say that even though Cubahas had an excellent Civil Defense structure in place formany years, Hurricanes Charley and Ivan have been greattraining experiences for the Cuban people.Now we're entering the Recuperative Phase.Televised local journalists' reports with footage ofdifferent locations where Ivan passesOn Isla de la Juventud, the first secretary of the partysaid that citrus and plantain crops were hit hard, again.She underscored that in the past eight years in a row, theIsla has been hit by a hurricane each year - eighthurricanes in eight years! Given the location of the Isla,if a hurricane is heading for Havana or Matanzas, itcrosses the Isla. If it heads towards Provincia Habana orPinar del Rio, it crosses the Isla. If it misses the Cubanmainland but heads towards the Yucatan Peninsula, it hitsthe Isla.In total, 24,523 people were evacuated in the Isla. Of thisnumber, over 80% went to the homes of neighbours, friendsor relatives.Throughout the country, residential schools were beginfunctioning again tomorrow (Wednesday), and the hydroplaneand ferry transportation between Islad de la Juventud andthe mainland will be operational.Carlos Rafael Diegues, vice-president of ICRT (Cuban Radioand Television Institute) gave a phone report from LaBajada in Pinar del Rio. He said that millions of cubicmetres of wood had been lost through the high number offallen trees. Yes, wood can be recovered from fallen trees,but many had not reached their mature growth. In drivingalong the main two-lane east-west road in the western endof the province, many electric posts were down. The patternis this: rather than one here and there falling down, along segment would be standing, followed by 18 or so postsin a row all on the ground.In Batabano (Provincia Habana), over 10,000 people wereevacuated. A local Civil Defense spokesperson said thatit's the first time for them to put in place a plan thatprotects not only medicines and food (always done), butalso household items of individual families (a first). Inthe case of Batabano, all these things were stored in some30 huge container trucks. After this work was done and theresidents of Batabano were evacuated, representatives ofthe local Civil Defense structure went to all the evacueelocations to speak with people, find out how they feel, andinform them that everything was in hand.As for crops which were destroyed by Ivan, reconstructionwill follow the same plan that's already in place for theaftermath of Charley: planting short-cycle crops such ascorn, squash, tomato and cabbage.Aimee Aguirre Hernandez, vice-president of INRH (NationalInstitute for Hydraulic Resources) One of the importantissues for us is how to guarantee water for the populationwhen power goes out. In this regard, Hurricanes Charley andIvan have been strong training experiences for us. To solvethis problem, we've had a lot of integration andcoordination among different organizations, and have comeup with multisectoral solutions.In Pinar del Rio, all fourteen municipalities have beenaffected and are without power (again). Among the measureswe've taken are the following: -before the hurricanestruck, orient the population - via the mass media -of theneed to organize a household-level reserve of water.Hospitals and food elaboration centres have done the samething. -get diesel generators in place. We call these"electrogonos", meaning a generator which runs on diesel soas to provide the electricity needed to run other equipment-make sure wells are in condition, especially those thatother a manual pumping capacity -in the province, there are130 water tanker trucks, each with their own supply hoses.There are also 25 diesel generators that come under theprovincial Agriculture and Sugar ministries that can helppump water to fill up the water tanker trucks -orientpeople that when there's a power outage, it's moreimportant than ever to use water frugally -we've createdreserves of water in the provincial capitalIn Isla de la Juventud, the 20 sources of water for thecapital, Nuevo Gerona, have been affected by the lack ofpower. Now, however, six are already working from powerprovided by "electrogonos", and we anticipate that another18 around the island will soon come into operation. Thereare also eight water tanker trucks on the Isla, four fromINRH and four from other ministries.Around the country, as of August 31st, the existingnational dam capacity was only 40% full, with a total ofsome 3,500 million cubic metres of water. Now, onlyfourteen days later, after the passage of Ivan, this hasincreased to 42%, or some 300 million cubic metres.Turning now to of Pinar del Rio, on August 31st, provincialdams were 44% full. Now they are 45.3% full. In many partsof the province, it rained very heavily. For instance, inSandino, Cortes and several other areas, over 300 mm ofrain fell in 24 hours. In the city of Havana there's alsobeen a slight increase, although it didn't rain as muchthere as elsewhere. And in Isla de la Juventud, municipaldams increased their water supply by 1.7%.Ing. Juan Antonia Pruna Amer, general director, UnionElectrica In Cuba, there are over 62,000 electric posts andover 8,000 transformers. In Pinar del Rio, which ispresently without light, we anticipate having powerreestablished sooner than we were able to do afterHurricane Charley. (NOTE: after Charley, the entireprovince of Pinar spent eleven days without power!) We'realready checking the 110 MW, 220 MW and 33 MW lines inPinar del Rio. We anticipate that within three days, the110 MW line will be reestablished, and soon thereafter the33 MW line. We already have over 500 linemen from someseven provinces working with us. Some come from Matanzasand others from other provinces. The different provincialbrigades bring their specialized vehicles, equipment andsupplies. It's anticipated that by tomorrow (Wednesday),power will start to flow into parts of the province.(NOTE: Just a couple of days before Ivan hit Cuba, linemenfrom Ciego de Avila, who had been working for the previousmonth in the city of Havana, and others from Camaguey whohad worked in Pinar del Rio, returned to their homes. OnTV, their first comments as they got off the bus to greettheir families, were "If we need to go back tomorrow, we'reready!" And indeed, two days later, many of these samelinemen are now in Pinar del Rio working on reinstallingpower.)Televised local journalists' reports with footage ofdifferent locations where Ivan passesIn Playa Bailen, located between Playa Boca de Galafre andCortes in Pinar's southern coastal zone, when HurricaneLili struck in 2002, it destroyed many houses. During thefollowing year, almost everything was rebuilt from scratch.When Hurricane Ivan passed, it left in its wake over 97% ofPlaya Bailen's installations (such as beachside cabanas)and houses destroyed! In fact, Ivan did more damage thanLili: power cables are down everywhere, the community'sonly restaurant is completely destroyed, etc. Lili'sinundations of ocean water were greater, but Ivan was moredestructive to the built infrastructure.In Isabel Rubio, sustained winds reached 124 kph, 200 mm ofrain fell in three hours, and the town was flooded withwaters from the nearby Cuyaguateje River.In La Coloma, located 25 km south and a bit east of theprovincial capital of Pinar del Rio, the entire communityof some 7,330 people were evacuated. Now, residents havestarted to return home and are already cleaning up theroads and their homes, and making plans for reconstructingtheir community. Some 300, however, are still unable toreturn due to penetrations of the ocean which are stillpresent. In nearby Playa Las Canas, not only were localresidents evacuated, but their horses, pigs and sheep werealso transferred to safe areas.(NOTE: after the Mesa Redonda, the 8pm News had a littlestory from an evacuation centre - located in a large highschool - in the province of Sancti Spiritus talking aboutthe evacuation of pets as well as people. In addition todogs and cats, there were also pet birds, hamsters andother animals. These animals are kept in a part of theschool separate from their owners, to prevent thepossibility of disease, and all animals receive a rabiesand other vaccination, to also prevent any possibleoutbreak of disease. A veterinarian is on hand.)Jose Antonio Fernandez, executive president, ETECSA(national phone company) We anticipate a quick recuperationof the communication problems caused by Hurricane Ivan. InPinar del Rio, five areas (Guane, Arroyos de Mantua,Pilotos, Los Palacios and Alonso de Rojas) had theircommunication cut off, but we've already reestablishedcommunication with Pilotos and Alonso de Rojas. Around theprovince, just over 200 telephone posts were heavilyinclined by the winds and bout 80 were knocked down.In Isla de la Juventud, the microwave link is veryimportant to maintaining communication (radio, TV andphone) with the mainland, and this behaved very well!Around the municipality, 87 posts are leaving over from thestrong winds and 32 were knocked down.Another important factor is that before, during and afterthe hurricane, the provincial radio stations in Pinar delRio did very good work. Radio Guama and Radio Sandino wereable to maintain their link with the city of Havana. RadioReloj, which is a national news program, has had - for along time - a special telephone number that people can callto hear the news "live", if power has gone out locally.During Ivan, we enabled the same capacity with Radio Guamain Pinar del Rio and Radio Caribe in Isla de la Juventud.On Sunday night, when Ivan was upon the Isla and there wasno power, Radio Caribe received over 54,000 calls in afive-hour period, from 3-8pm.Right now, we have four specialized brigades from the cityof Havana working on installing the fibre optic line fromboth Pinar del Rio and Isla de la Juventud to the capital.This is a new system for these areas; it's never beeninstalled before. We anticipate that it will take ten daysto repair Pinar's full telephone service and connect it tothe fibre optic system.Randy Alonso, program moderator The three most affectedmunicipalities in Pinar del Rio are Guane, Sandino (whichincludes the Guanahacabibes Peninsula) and San Juan yMartinez.To conclude, Cuba's Civil Defense system shows what a poorcountry can do, at low cost, to protect its population. Animportant ingredient is using popular methods and havingthe support of the population.Dr. Jose Rubiera, jefe, Depto de Pronosticos, Instituto deMeterologia The most important thing is political will ofthe state and participation of the people.At the present time, Hurricane Ivan is a category 3hurricane located 520 km south southwest of the mouth ofthe Mississippi River.Lt.Col. Luis Angel Macareno Veliz, Estado Mayor de laDefensa Civil The positive results of our Civil Defensearen't a chance thing. They come from the work of manyyears. If we look at hurricans that have hit Cuba betweenthe period 1995 to 2004 (about six or seven), to date wehave evacuated over four million people and had only 20deaths.

Here's the exact numbers:-4,449,201 people evacuated-262,679 houses affected-20 deaths

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