Cuban authorities have identified the six individuals who tragically lost their lives in the town of San Antonio del Sur as Hurricane Oscar swept through Guantánamo province. Among those who perished were three elderly individuals over the age of 80 and a five-year-old child. The remaining two victims were between 30 and 40 years old.
According to the Facebook page 'Miguel Noticias,' run by pro-government journalist Miguel Reyes Mendoza, the victims have been named as follows: Francisco Colombia Matos, aged 92; Esmeraldo Noa Fiffe, aged 82; Antolino Areas Domínguez, aged 84; Alexander Saben Matos, aged 42; Irianni Labañino Domínguez, aged 31; and Luís Andis Elías Labañino, aged 5.
On Monday, Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel reported the deaths of at least six individuals in San Antonio del Sur due to Hurricane Oscar, which made landfall on Sunday before weakening to a tropical storm. "Regrettably, based on the information available, six lives have been lost in San Antonio del Sur. Rescue operations are ongoing to assist the population, and assessments of damage and impact continue, as there are areas completely flooded that remain inaccessible," Díaz-Canel stated in a broadcast on Cuban television.
The official reports did not specify the causes of death for these six Cubans. However, images shared on social media suggest that the victims may have drowned due to the severe flooding in the region. "It must be noted that the municipalities of San Antonio and Imías have been severely impacted by this event, with flood levels never before recorded in these areas," Díaz-Canel commented further.
On his social media platforms, Díaz-Canel highlighted that certain areas remain unreachable and emphasized that the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) and the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) are actively involved in rescue efforts within these municipalities.
The simultaneous occurrence of Hurricane Oscar and the collapse of the national power grid (SEN) left hundreds of thousands of Cubans without electricity, hindering their access to critical information about the storm. This situation raised alarms among the civil society, concerned about the heightened risk to thousands of residents in the region.