Meeting to check recovery actions after hurricane Ian

Havana, October 19 (RHC)-- On Tuesday afternoon, a meeting was held at the Palace of the Revolution to review recovery actions following the passage of Hurricane Ian.  The meeting was headed by the President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez.

While the moment of the passage of Hurricane Ian over Cuba recedes in time, the agility and quality of each recovery action increase its value; because those affected -who must also be the architects of each step forward- expect the best and most expeditious responses, to erase the gigantic trail of destruction of a natural phenomenon that raged in the westernmost part of the island.

The province of Pinar del Río, the most damaged by the meteor, occupied the largest number of analyses in the meeting that also counted with the presence of the Prime Minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz, and the Vice President of the Republic, Salvador Valdés Mesa. Both; members of the Political Bureau.

Yamilé Ramos Cordero, First Secretary of the Communist Party in Pinar del Río, informed via video-conference that 5,244 people are currently evacuated in the territory. And in relation to the recovery of the electric service, she detailed that the figure already reaches 57.41%.

On this last front, when breaking down data Yamilé Ramos Cordero said that the municipality of Mantua is at 100%; that of Sandino at 98%; Los Palacios, at 96.84%. According to the data she shared during the check-up, the lowest levels are located in San Juan y Martínez (with 24.82%); in San Luis (with 27.15%); and in Consolación del Sur (42.74%).

The party leader explained that they have been reorganizing the forces, in order to send most of them to the neediest places. She also emphasized the importance of the population joining in the restorative tasks in each zone, because this will make people feel closer to the solution of their problems.

Regarding the water service, Ramos Cordero said: "We maintain stability in the city's water mains. The water inlet pressure to the towns, to whom it corresponds according to the distribution cycle, is higher; and a decrease in the cycles is already being appreciated, although the areas that do not receive (the vital liquid) through networks continue to be a difficulty".

He explained that the distribution of water in pipes is being maintained - 97 are being used - and "control, organization and rigor are being maintained, but we are still not able to reach the entire population with the necessary frequency".

The First Secretary of the Party in the western province spoke about the food and its continuous distribution; about the decisions taken to reach all the families; about the food that continues to be prepared and sold in the areas that need it most; about the more than 300 collective kitchens; and she also made an update on the agricultural system, where the battle to recover urban agricultural fields is being fought, and the mobilizations of the workers and of the enterprises and entities of the territory are being maintained.

The tobacco campaign, the efforts being made to transfer that precious product to other factories on the island, and to recover as much as possible that was damaged by the hurricane, were also topics that made up the dissertation of the party leader, who, regarding the housing fund, reported that today the province has 106 128 houses affected, and 13 213 total collapses.

Visiting each family is on the agenda of the authorities of the territory, affirmed Yamilé Ramos Cordero. She added that 3,872 families have already purchased construction materials, while another 3,800 have a list of what they need.

"We have construction materials in all the municipalities," said the leader, who said that 203 bank credits and 280 subsidies have already been granted to build houses in Pinar del Río.

Work continues, Ramos Cordero added, on educational, health, cultural and sports facilities. As for communications, he informed the country's leadership: "We have already recovered 100% of mobile telephony and 79.19% of fixed telephony".