A severe local storm toppled trees, affected electricity, and caused visible damage to the environment in several municipalities in Havana. This happened on Wednesday, June 16, but in 2008, on September 7, Hurricane Ike wiped out the forest for Las Tunas inhabitants, and more than 80 thousand homes were damaged in some way.
Las Tunas, Cuba.- There are still consequences and affected families pending a solution. Many sad and panic stories keep the memories of the towns and their people. And we are in hurricane season again!
So, tree pruning seems slow to me. Too tall those that are in the vacant lots, patios, and other spaces in the neighborhoods; others, much copious and fragile in avenues, streets, and other public places, in which there are companies, socio-cultural institutions, schools, childcare centers, shops. Anyway if suddenly we are surprised by a gale like the one that overwhelmed the people of Havana. .. Not even writing it is good, especially when the outbreak of the COVID-19 in this city brings us tense, overwhelmed, and busy.
It is a necessity to take sides. This season, according to national and foreign experts, will be very active, and high temperatures and humidity favor the occurrence of thunderstorms and heavy rains. The consequences can be unpredictable and surprise us. I believe that we should not wait for Communal Services or the Electric Company to take on the task or have the resources to begin pruning.
If everyone is in charge of “passing” the machete to their trees, clearing the drains and maintaining them, securing any object vulnerable to strong winds…; in short, if we take care of "our bits" with time and calm to think and make the appropriate decisions, we will all win.
We need to minimize the risks that may alter the already complicated day-to-day that we have with the confrontation with this pandemic, which is expanding strongly and in parallel with the arrival of an inevitable natural phenomenon.
It is also a different way to oxygenate the spirit and reduce stress from the stalking virus, economic complexities, job and student instability, managing children at home, and being forced to live routines that are difficult to accept as normal and overcome without emotional and psychological consequences, not counting those that generate getting sick or being suspicious.
Hurricanes can form at any time and we have to be proactive and cautious. Let's think about the accumulated experiences. An evacuee center in times of COVID-19 is not the same. Let us secure in advance the roofs of the houses, the lids of the tanks, the corrals of the animals, and collect as much fruit or food as can be harvested.
The hurricane season in the North Atlantic area, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea could bring the formation of 16 tropical cyclonic organisms, and eight of them could reach the category of hurricanes.
“The danger of Cuba being affected by at least one tropical cyclone is high, with a probability of 85 percent, and of being affected by one with winds greater than 118 kilometers per hour (hurricane) is moderate, with 45 percent probability," says the latest forecast from the Institute of Meteorology (INSMET). According to specialists, these forecasts are based on the fact that warmer temperatures were observed in the waters of the tropical Atlantic during the first quarter of the year, which were more significant in the Caribbean Sea.
In time, perhaps we can make the memories of the 2021 hurricane season less sad and the forest will not be blurred by our own guilt. At least for me, the combination of a hurricane with a pandemic makes me bristle.
