The harrowing experience shared by 12-year-old Abram Daniel González Hernández, a Cuban child recovering from injuries sustained during the floods in San Antonio del Sur in the wake of Hurricane Oscar, is nothing short of moving. Residing in the Macambo area, Abram recounted his ordeal to Cuban television from the Pediatric Hospital Pedro Agustín Pérez in Guantánamo, describing the night he woke up to the rising waters and what followed.
“It was just a 'little water', nothing serious,” he said, referring to the rain when they went to bed. “We stayed, but when I woke up, the water was already about a foot deep and kept rising. We climbed onto the rafters. The house went under, but I managed to get out, and so did my family,” the child explained.
Abram recounted the terrifying moment when he lost his grip on his mother's hand. “I let go of my mom’s hand. That’s when I hit a coconut tree. I held on, managed to climb up, and felt cold,” he described, detailing the moments when he got separated from his mother and how he clung to a tree for survival.
However, the tree gave way, causing him to fall and injure himself. “The coconut tree started to crack, and when I jumped, my leg got caught,” he described, referring to the significant injury to his left leg that required surgery after he was rescued. “I drifted out to sea,” he continued.
Struggle for Survival and Rescue
In his fight for survival, Abram spotted “two rocks” where the waves weren’t “crashing as hard,” allowing him to climb to safety. He made his way to Yacabo, then to Macambo, eventually reaching a neighbor’s house on the beach, where a military doctor attended to him.
After receiving initial care in San Antonio del Sur, Abram was transferred to the provincial Pediatric Hospital on Tuesday afternoon. A multidisciplinary team decided on surgical intervention for his leg, which showed signs of sepsis, fever, and necrotic tissue. “We proceeded with a surgical debridement of the wound, and fortunately, there were no bone or muscle injuries; the damage was limited to the skin and subcutaneous tissue,” reported Dr. Evis Navarro Pérez.
The wound was cleaned, and Abram's overall condition is good. He is receiving antibiotic treatment tailored to the type of injury, and after 16 hours, his recovery seems promising. “The wound is clean and has no odor, which indicates a positive recovery,” Navarro added.
Unanswered Questions and Discrepancies
The boy is currently in the care of his grandmother. The official report does not clarify what happened to his mother. In the aftermath of Hurricane Oscar's devastating impact on Guantánamo province, the testimonies of those affected challenge the official figures released by Cuban authorities, which report only seven fatalities as the official toll.