Intense drought affects more than 400,000 people in Cuba, according to official media

More than 400,000 Cubans, especially in the eastern half of the country, are affected by an intense drought, the state press reported Monday. According to the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources, quoted by the official newspaper Granma, it is the phenomenon known as “meteorological drought”, a long period without rain or below average. In addition, according to official figures provided by the newspaper, between March 1 and 10, there were 137 municipalities in the Caribbean country in which no rain was reported even once.

The Cubans affected by this drought are mainly concentrated in eastern Guantánamo (more than 90,000); Camagüey (more than 60,000); Santiago de Cuba (more than 50,000) and Holguín (more than 150,000). The only western one on the list is Havana (more than 47,000). The insular authorities, quoted by Granma, remarked that “the eastern provinces have made investments to face this phenomenon, which needs to be activated.”

Vladimir Guevara, scientific director of the Institute of Meteorology, added that the rainy season is expected to arrive this year from May 15.