HAVANA- The center of Hurricane Rafael left Cuba through the Bay of Cabañas, in Artemisa, around 6:00 PM on Wednesday, November 6, after crossing the Island from south to north in less than two hours, despite the forecasts of specialists. that its transit through the national geography would take longer.
The Institute of Meteorology reported that the meteor was leaving Cuba after entering the town of Playa Majana, south coast of the province of Artemisa, at 4:20 PM.
As it wore over Cuban territory, Rafael lost intensity and dropped to category 2 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, with maximum sustained winds of 170 kilometers per hour. It maintains a course close to the northwest and a travel speed of 22 kilometers per hour, which takes it towards the Gulf of Mexico.
Cuba continues to experience numerous rains, showers and thunderstorms in the central and western regions, which will continue for the next 24 hours and will be strong and intense, with accumulations of between 100 and 200 millimeters, which could be higher in some locations.
At the Mariel, Artemisa meteorological station, intense rain of 121.8 millimeters was reported between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, of which 78.6 millimeters between 4 and 5 PM, as well as maximum sustained winds of 130 kilometers per hour. hour and a gust of 186 kilometers per hour.
At the Casablanca weather station in Havana, maximum sustained winds of 90 kilometers per hour and a gust of 120 kilometers per hour were reported.
In the next few hours the winds will continue from the southeast to the south in the west and center, with speeds between 70 and 85 kilometers per hour, with higher gusts. Hurricane force winds, with speeds between 135 and 150 kilometers per hour, with higher gusts, could persist in the early hours of Wednesday night, mainly in the provinces of Mayabeque, Artemisa and Pinar del Río.
Strong swells will also continue on the central and western south coast, with waves between five and seven meters and strong coastal flooding on the southern coast of the provinces of Sancti Spíritus, Cienfuegos and Matanzas, which will be higher in Mayabeque, Artemisa, Pinar del Río, the Isle of Youth and the Canarreos archipelago.
After the hurricane goes out to sea, strong swells will be generated on the northern coast of the western region, with moderate to strong coastal flooding on the northern coast of the provinces of Artemisa and Pinar del Río.
