HAVANA, Feb 22 (NNN-ACN) — The Cuban authorities are constantly monitoring the situation, said Pres Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez referring to the relentless fight offered by the Cuban Fire Brigade and Forest Rangers against a fire in Pinares de Mayari, in the province of Holguin.
On Twitter, the president commented that the area is affected by a severe drought, as is almost the entire nation.
Diaz-Canel affirmed that the inhabitants of the area have been evacuated and are safe from the smoke and flames.
Comrades from different sectors, among them the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), are fighting hard against the fire, he added in a second message.
Detected in the afternoon of Jan 26, the fire was caused by the impact of the heavy drought during the last five months and the abundance of organic plant material, which favored the advance of the flames, affecting more than a thousand hectares of forest.
Meanwhile, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez extended his condolences to Brazil’s government and people for the victims of heavy rains that hit the municipalities of San Sebastian and Ubatuba, on the northern coast of Sao Paulo state.
The diplomat extended his sympathies to all the relatives of the disappeared under the torrential rains which surpassed 600 millimeters in just one day, an unprecedentedly high indicator in such a period of time in the country.
At least 44 persons have died, 40 have disappeared and hundreds have been displaced according to local media, which also reported building collapses, and severe damage inflicted on crucial services like drinking water infrastructure, power supply and telephone services.
The most critical situation was reported in the municipality of San Sebastian particularly in facilities on the beaches of Camburi, Baleia, Juqueri, Sahy and Boicucanga. — NNN-ACN
