Havana, October 18 (RHC)-- A Cuban merchant ship has arrived in Antigua and Barbuda loaded with humanitarian aid for victims of Hurricanes Irma and María, which battered the twin islands last month.

Also on board was a team of Cuban engineers, who traveled to contribute to ongoing recovery efforts particularly in the civil engineering and electric power sectors. 

Addressing the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne thanked Cuba and Venezuela for the assistance provided in the wake of the devastation caused by the two powerful storms. 

Browne acknowledged that despite both nations having their own challenges to cope with, Havana and Caracas are on the front-line, helping other sister Caribbean nations recover from the latest natural disasters.

In the case of Cuba, the island nation is also recovering from Hurricane Irma, whose hurricane strength winds and heavy rains struck 13 out of the country's 15 provinces, and in the case of Venezuela, the dirty war unleashed by right-wing sectors with foreign backing.

Meanwhile, Cuba sent a 1.6 ton humanitarian cargo to Dominica in the wake of Hurricane María, as well as a team of search and rescue experts and a team of doctors, who joined the Cuban health professionals who were already working there in the framework of existing cooperation programs in the sector.

As part of cooperation programs with Caribbean nations, Cuban health professionals are offering their services also in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas and Haiti.