By HAVANA, Cuba — Tropical Storm Oscar brought heavy rains and strong winds to Cuba, an island already beleaguered by a massive power outage after brushing the Bahamas.
It made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph), in the eastern Cuban province of Guantanamo, near the city of Baracoa, on Sunday evening. By late Sunday, the storm had weakened to a tropical storm with winds of 70 mph (110 kph), according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
The storm was 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of Guantanamo moving west-northwest at 6 mph (10 kph).
Thunderstorms and rain, along with moderate flooding in low-lying areas, were reported in the country’s eastern provinces. Cuban media said 2-meter (6.5-feet) swells were hitting the coast and roofs and walls in Baracoa were damaged. Authorities have set up 20 centers for evacuees.
The storm is expected to move across eastern Cuba on Sunday night and Monday. Forecasters said 6 to 12 inches (15 to 31 centimeters) of rain are expected across eastern Cuba through early Wednesday, with some isolated locations getting up to 18 inches (46 centimeters). A storm surge of up to 3 feet (almost 1 meter) in some areas of Cuba’s north shore in the area was possible, the center said.
Oscar is expected to weaken as it moves over eastern Cuba before making a turn to the northeast and approaching the central Bahamas on Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Earlier on Sunday, Oscar made landfall on Great Inagua Island in the Bahamas. A storm surge that could cause coastal flooding was forecast, along with heavy rainfall.
The hurricane’s arrival comes as Cuba struggles to recover from its worst blackout in over two years, which left millions without power for two days last week. Some electricity was restored on Saturday.
Philippe Papin of the National Hurricane Center said it was somewhat unexpected that Oscar became a hurricane Saturday.
“Unfortunately, the system kind of snuck up a little bit on us,” Papin said.
Meanwhile, hours earlier, Tropical Storm Nadine formed off the southern Caribbean coast of Mexico but quickly weakened into a tropical depression as it moved over land.
