Hurricane Alarm
State and Society
Carlos Luis Estrada Guantánamo , Cuba
R
ecently our beautiful Isle suffered again the fury of Mother Nature , specifically expressed in the cyclones or hurricanes that are so common in this geographical region from June to November . The actual protagonist was called Matthew and it marched slowly , as if it was preparing conditions for a battle . Its passing through the Caribbean left an indelible mark of its ephemeral existence that , unfortunately , many will not be able to forget , although it has not directly affected us . The strong winds , the rains and the sea swept away many houses and belongings . This is an additional problem to the difficulties faced by the ordinary citizens in these years marked by sacrifice and deprivation while acquiring the most basic consumables . The hurricane season lasts about six months . Forecasters focus on observatories to monitor and follow up all the phenomena . Radio and television announces the arrival of the hurricane season and divulge the actions to be taken to avoid unnecessary deaths and to protect property and health . All this is part of our existence . As time goes by and these events occur from times to times , we acquire experiences that presumably will help us to reduce damages the next time . I speak not only about the population , but also about the nation , given its precarious economic situation . We are not ignorant and we have accumulated a vast experience since the infamous hurricane Flora ( 1963 ). Putting such experience into practice is a good sign of having learned from setbacks . Although we are happy about being not , as a rule , fighters against these meteorological phenomena , which usually affect more the western region , we have suffered much with Sandy ( 2012 ) and we saw how Santiago de Cuba collapsed because of that gust of high wind and heavy rain . Guantanamo felt some weak gusts of wind and we thought our life was over , but we were very far away from the lived experience in Santiago . At the end of September 2016 , a storm was formed in the Atlantic and the meteorological services started to follow its trajectory and intensity in detail . At the National Center of Forecasts , its director José Rubiera warned that the easternmost region would be the most affected and insisted on the need to take the necessary actions to minimize both the material and human losses expected from this phenomenon , which was forecasted as one of the most intense hurricanes in recent years . Despite all the warnings , the total destruction of some municipalities in Guantanamo left no room for doubt : the civil defense did little or nothing . Before the TV started to broadcast images , some questions were already being posed : What happened with the accumulated experience ? Why the acquired knowledge wasn ´ t applied ? Was it casual , or a result brought by laziness and absolute disdain for the fate of the people ? For trying to answer these questions , we must start with the days leading up to Matthew . The Cuban Meteorological Institute was aware of its formation and
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