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Cuba to Let U.S. Officials Visit Country

By Anita Snow, Associated Press Writer, October 28, 2005.

HAVANA - President Fidel Castro has confirmed that Cuba agreed to let three U.S. aid officials visit the island to assess damage from Hurricane Wilma's assault on the island this week.

But during a Thursday night television appearance, he made it clear that his idea in letting them visit was to discuss ways to improve disaster assistance among countries in the region.

"Cuba has not solicited international aid," Castro said during a regular public affairs problem, reading from the diplomatic note his country sent to the U.S. government accepting the visit.

"It shares, however, the point of view" that countries in the region should "provide each other with mutual assistance in situations of disaster."

The State Department had announced earlier Thursday that Cuba agreed to let three U.S. Agency for International Development experts visit in a rare show of cooperation.

Cuba has routinely turned down American offers of assistance during disasters over the years.

Waist-deep water coursed through the streets of Havana earlier this week, chunks of the city's famous Malecon seawall were ripped off, and already-crumbling buildings along the coastal highway were battered by high winds and waves.

According to the State Department's Cuba experts, this was the first time the Castro government has accepted a U.S. offer of emergency assistance, department spokesman Sean McCormack said.

The display of U.S.-Cuban cooperation was not expected to produce any easing in the friction between the two countries. The official U.S. policy is to seek a democratic transition in Cuba once the 79-year-old Castro is gone, rather than accept a regime-orchestrated succession. The U.S. trade embargo dates back more than 40 years, and Castro was waged a decades-long struggle against U.S. interests.

Nevertheless, the Cuban leader seemed impressed by what he considered to be the "respectful" tone of the letter offering assistance sent by the new chief of the U.S. Interests Section in Washington, Michael Parmly.

Castro had a particularly contentious relationship with Parmly's predecessor, James Cason, who he once characterized as a "bully."

After Hurricane Dennis pummeled the island in July, Castro expressed gratitude for Washington's offer of $50,000 in aid but rejected it.

Havana offered 1,600 doctors to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast in August. The State Department said the Cuban help was not needed because enough American doctors had offered their services.

It is not unusual for the United States to offer aid to adversary countries. Iran accepted U.S. aid following an earthquake in 2003. Also, there have been frequent humanitarian food shipments to North Korea over the past decade.

It was unclear when the three U.S. aid experts would arrive in Cuba. Any aid offers would be based on what that team found, and all aid would be distributed through independent groups, McCormack said.

Associated Press Writer George Gedda contributed to this report from Washington

Cuba Accepts U.S. Aid Offer for First Time

By Anne Gearan, AP Diplomatic Writer, October 27, 2005.

WASHINGTON - Cuba has unexpectedly agreed to a quiet U.S. offer of emergency aid following Hurricane Wilma, and three Americans will travel to Cuba to assess needs there, the State Department said Thursday.

Washington has routinely offered humanitarian relief for hurricanes and other disasters in Cuba, and Cuban leader Fidel Castro himself has routinely turned the offers down. After Hurricane Dennis pummeled the island in July, Castro expressed gratitude for Washington's offer of $50,000 in aid but rejected it.

"This was the first time they have accepted an offer of assistance," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said, at least based on the "collective memory" of diplomats at the department.

The display of U.S.-Cuban cooperation was not expected to produce any easing in the long-standing hostility between the two countries.

Washington sent a diplomatic note to Cuban officials on Tuesday, a day after day the storm pounded the island nation, offering to send emergency supplies. Cuba accepted the offer Wednesday, McCormack said.

The State Department did not specify what supplies might be sent, but humanitarian assistance generally covers food, medicine, related supplies or emergency housing.

A three-person team from the U.S. Agency for International Development is making travel arrangements now, McCormack said. Additional aid offers would be based on what that team found, and all aid would go to Cuba indirectly, through aid groups, McCormack said.

Cuba and the United States do not have full diplomatic relations, a legacy of more than 40 years of Cold War acrimony. A U.S. trade embargo on Cuba has been in place since the Kennedy administration. More recently, the Bush administration has branded Cuba one of the world's few remaining "outposts of tyranny" in a league with Myanmar, Belarus and Zimbabwe.

Havana offered 1,600 doctors to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, which hit the United States on Aug. 29. The State Department said the Cuban help was not needed because enough American doctors had offered their services.

Floodwaters in Havana caused damage to historic buildings and the famed Malecon seawall. Dozens of city blocks were flooded by the storm, but no deaths were reported in Havana. Wilma has been blamed for at least 22 deaths, five in Florida, 12 in Haiti, at least 4 in Mexico and 1 in Jamaica.

Wilma Floods Havana but Kills None

By Vanessa Arrington, Associated Press Writer. Oct 26, 2005.

HAVANA - Dozens of city blocks in the Cuban capital were immersed in sea water after Hurricane Wilma swept past the island en route to Florida - but not a single death was reported.

Around the Caribbean, Wilma was blamed for at least 22 deaths - five in Florida, 12 in Haiti, at least four in Mexico and one in Jamaica.

Part of the country's good fortune could be because Wilma never made landfall here, but many also credit the fact people in Fidel Castro's Cuba are instructed from an early age how to move quickly during a natural disaster.

The United Nations and other international organizations have long praised Cuba's track record in preserving lives during hurricanes that regularly batter the island. When a tropical storm starts brewing in the Caribbean, a well-oiled hurricane-response machine clicks on in Cuba.

First, there's the informative phase, in which the island's state-run media begins broadcasting frequent announcements about the storm's movement. Jose Rubiera, head of Cuba's National Meteorology Institute, starts making television appearances, contributing to his near-celebrity status on the island.

If asked on the street, most Cubans can recite the storm's latest coordinates and projected route. Because there is no MTV or HBO on state-sanctioned television programming, most people are watching the government's constant storm coverage.

Next comes the alert phase, informing Cubans that a hurricane hit is probable and to prepare for possible evacuation. Shortly thereafter comes the third phase - alarm - and evacuations begin.

The evacuations - which are mandatory and rarely defied - are a regular part of life for Cubans, especially those living in coastal areas prone to flooding. In the days before Wilma passed Cuba, about 700,000 people were evacuated in this country of about 11.2 million.

All the state's resources are mobilized, focused on the same goal: to ensure that no one dies.

Vehicles are rounded up to provide transport for people in danger areas, and schools and other government buildings are converted into temporary shelters.

Citizens serving on civil defense committees - organized by community, by neighborhood, even by block - also go into high gear, ensuring that each shelter is properly stocked with food, water, blankets and other supplies.

Civil defense workers go from house to house in their neighborhoods, ensuring that everyone gets out in time. They are helped by leaders of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, an ideological neighborhood watch group that keeps tabs on every person on every block in Cuba.

By the time the storm hits, the streets are empty, with residents tucked away in locations believed to be safe from whipping winds and drenching rains.

Cubans regularly also open their doors to neighbors, relatives and friends. During Hurricane Wilma, officials reported that about 80 percent of those evacuated stayed in other people's homes rather than government shelters.

"Everyone helps each other here," Dayami Gonzalez said Tuesday while cleaning up her Havana home after floodwaters that had reached more than 3 feet inside began receding. "In the United States it seems like there's more egoism, where everyone just worries about themselves."

Giraldo Garcia, 64 and retired, blamed the U.S. government for the more than 1,000 Katrina-related deaths in New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast.

"It's like those in power don't think about anything but war," Garcia said. "It was so painful to see innocent people whose lives could have been saved.

Garcia praised his own country's system, particularly the response to the massive flooding in the capital, which submerged the coastal Malecon highway and several blocks inland after massive waves from Hurricane Wilma battered the island's northern coast.

Military amphibious vehicles and rescue squads evacuated nearly 250 residents from homes throughout Havana after the waves hit Monday. Government workers in huge trucks distributed meals of crackers, hot dogs and drinks to those still stuck without running water and electricity Tuesday.

"If there's any risk to human lives, I know that the government won't leave us to lady luck," Garcia said.

Floodwaters Recede in Cuba, Reveal Damage

By Vanessa Arrington, Associated Press Writer, Oct 25, 2005.

HAVANA - Floodwaters from Hurricane Wilma that transformed the coastal streets of Cuba's capital into rivers began receding Tuesday, leaving behind damage to historic buildings and the famed Malecon seawall.

The coastal highway paralleling the Malecon was dotted with chunks of the seawall as well as huge holes where the road had been chewed up by pressure from the ocean.

The windows of Havana's seaside hotels and the headquarters of the island's tourism ministry were smashed, with nearby wire fences twisted and clumped with debris.

Those living near the ocean sifted through what was left of their belongings.

"I wanted to die when I first came home," said Dayami Gonzalez, scrubbing her refrigerator. "We just finished fixing up this apartment a year ago, and now we have to go back and do repairs again. It could take years."

Gonzalez's husband, Alejandro Rios, held up a tape measure to a gooey line on the wall showing how high the water had reached - 38 inches. The couple had lifted most of their valuables up before the storm, but, in most cases, not high enough.

"We never thought it would come up this high," Gonzalez said of the water. "Mattresses, books, tables - ruined."

Basement apartments took the most severe blow, with water reaching the ceiling during the ocean's assault and still waist-deep under Tuesday's sunny skies.

There were no immediate reports of deaths attributed to Hurricane Wilma. Nearly 700,000 people were evacuated across Cuba's west as Wilma approached.

Although the Malecon and adjacent neighborhoods often flood during storms, the extent of Monday's flooding was highly unusual.

Associated Press writer Anne-Marie Garcia in Havana contributed to this report.

Nearly 250 Rescued From Flooded Cuba Homes

By Anita Snow, Associated Press Writer, Oct 25, 2005.

HAVANA - Fueled by Hurricane Wilma, the ocean surged over a wide stretch of Havana's seawall and flooded area neighborhoods Monday. Military divers used inflatable rafts to rescue hundreds of people from inundated homes.

The churning tide spread up to four blocks inland, flooding streets and buildings with water nearly four feet deep. Cars were submerged and only the bright blue tops of public phone booths peeked out. Waves lapped at the front door of the Foreign Ministry building as young men in wooden boats rowed nearby.

The high waves and winds damaged buildings fronting the Malecon that curves for several miles along Havana's coastline, from colonial era structures to modern glass and metal towers still under construction.

Plate glass windows were shattered, old wooden shutters were torn away and doors ripped off their hinges. Huge chunks of the concrete sea wall were pulled loose and thrown in the highway.

Throughout the rest of the capital, downed trees, branches, and other debris littered streets and highways.

There were no immediate reports of deaths or major injuries anywhere on the island. Nearly 700,000 people were evacuated across the island's west in recent days as Wilma approached, the official National Information Agency said Monday.

"We're amazed," resident Laura Gonzalez-Cueto said as she watched from behind a police cordon as military divers in wetsuits, masks and fins escorting small groups of people in the black inflatable rafts with outboard motors. Once they reached higher areas with less water, those rescued were taken away for medical attention.

"Since early today, the water has come all the way up to Linea and Paseo," said Gonzalez-Cueto, referring to a major thoroughfare four blocks from the coast now under more than 1 meter (3 feet) of water.

At least 244 people, including some children, were rescued during the morning, municipal official Mayra Lassale said.

Although the Malecon and adjacent neighborhoods often flood during storms, the extent of the flooding seen Monday after Wilma's assault was highly unusual and reportedly occurs only when hurricanes pass along Cuba's northern coast.

"The ocean is furious, as if it wants to take back the land," Rodrigo Cubal, 42, said as he and his family joined scores of other Havana residents gathering to watch the crashing waves.

The waters were expected to begin slowly receding throughout Tuesday.

Flooding and high winds caused heavy damage to homes elsewhere along the northern coastal, including the northern coastal community of Baracoa, just east of Havana.

The outer bands of Wilma flooded evacuated communities along Cuba's southern coast over the weekend while the hurricane clobbered Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. The storm passed to Cuba's north Monday on its way to landfall in southern Florida.

Flooding and high winds Monday caused heavy damage to houses in the northern coastal community of Baracoa, just east of Havana.

In Mariel, a port west of Havana, people stood outside their homes watching as huge waves rolled in one after another. "I've never seen waves like this," said 30-year-old Joelsis Calderin.

The government shut off electricity throughout Havana and the island's western region before dawn in a standard safety precaution. Power remained out in most of the capital at midafternoon.

Associated Press writers Vanessa Arrington in Mariel and Andrea Rodriguez in Havana also contributed to this report.

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