Oscar made landfall in eastern Cuba Sunday evening amid a power blackout, adding to fears that the storm may prove to be especially dangerous.
Oscar made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near the city of Baracoa shortly before 6 p.m. ET just hours after landfalling in the Bahamas, according to the National Hurricane Center. By 11 p.m. ET, Oscar’s maximum sustained winds decreased from 75 mph to 70 mph.
Cuba’s electrical grid collapsed on Sunday for the fourth time in 48 hours, marking a major setback in the government’s efforts to quickly restore power to exhausted residents already suffering from severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel.
The government canceled school through Wednesday — a rare move in Cuba — citing the hurricane and ongoing energy crisis. Officials said only essential workers should report to work Monday.
Hurricane center forecasters expect the storm to weaken after landfall as it moves over the mountainous terrain of eastern Cuba, but it could still be a tropical storm into the week as it moves north of Cuba late Monday and across the central Bahamas on Tuesday.
Eastern Cuba is forecast to receive 6 to 12 inches of rain through Wednesday morning, according to the hurricane center, with isolated amounts up to 18 inches. The center also warned that water could reach one to three feet above normal tide levels along the north shore of Cuba, accompanied by “large and destructive waves.”
Fears of ‘humanitarian crisis’
A dangerous storm surge is expected in the southeastern part of the Bahamas on Sunday, mainly around Great Inagua Island and later on the north shore of Cuba, the hurricane center forecasted.
AccuWeather forecasters fear Oscar could strengthen into a Category 2 storm.
“Heavy rain falling in the steep terrain of southeastern Cuba raises serious concerns about major flash flooding, as well as mudslides and rockslides,” said Jon Porter, a chief meteorologist for AccuWeather, in a statement. “Unfortunately, the combination of these factors may result in a humanitarian crisis in some parts of southeast Cuba should a more intense Oscar make a close pass or even make landfall in Cuba.”
An existing power crisis in Cuba has increased worries about Oscar’s impacts.
On Saturday, the Cuban government restored power to a fifth of the country’s 10 million people after its national grid collapsed twice in 24 hours.
“Hurricane impacts to Cuba are extremely concerning because of the ongoing power grid crisis in Cuba,” said Porter. “Adding a hurricane hit on top of the existing power failure can make the hurricane impact far worse, further risking lives and resulting in challenges in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from the hurricane’s impacts.”
The island first lost power after its electrical grid crashed on Friday afternoon when its largest power plant shut down, according to Reuters. Then the grid collapsed again Saturday morning.
Authorities reported the government made progress on restoring power before it announced the grid collapsed again Saturday evening.
Hurricane Oscar path
Hurricane Oscar spaghetti models
Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest-performing models to help make its forecasts.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
Contributing: John Gallas, Diane Pantaleo; USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida; Reuters
Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. You can connect with her on LinkedIn, follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tropical Storm Oscar could lead to ‘humanitarian crisis’
