Hurricane Sandy hit Cuba and Haiti hard when it passed through the two countries in late October causing deaths and destroying infrastructure, agricultural land and in many cases worsening the food security, health, financial and nutrition situation for many vulnerable groups.

Precautions in place in Havana's old town.

By Roberto de Jesús Guerra Pérez - Latin America

A rise in cholera cases in the Cuban capital Havana is being traced back to parts of the country worst affected by Hurricane Sandy two months ago.

Doctors who have recorded new cases of the disease during house-to-house inspections say the health ministry has declared a state of alert in the Jesús María and Belén communities of Habana Vieja municipality.

Habana Vieja – Old Havana – is a popular tourist area in the city centre.

Period covered by this Ops Update: 5 to 22 November 2012.

Appeal target (current): Swiss francs: 12,223,402

Appeal coverage: Current coverage of the Appeal stands at approximately 40 per cent only based on the total of in-kind donations, registered and unregistered pledges. Further contributions are urgently needed to help the Cuban Red Cross meet the immediate needs of the most vulnerable people affected by the floods.

· Appeal history:.

El Programa Mundial de Alimentos de las Naciones Unidas (PMA) anunció hoy la llegada a Cuba de unas 25,000 toneladas de arroz donadas por el Gobierno del Brasil cuyos costos de transporte fueron cubiertos por el Gobierno de Cuba. El arroz donado a Cuba será usado para apoyar programas de protección social basados en alimentos a lo largo del país.

LA HABANA, 18 de diciembre de 2012 - El pasado 25 de octubre, el Huracán Sandy impactó la región oriental de Cuba como un huracán categoría 2 (aproximándose a categoría 3). El paso del evento meteorológico tuvo una duración de cerca de cinco horas. Sus fuertes vientos, de hasta 200 kilómetros por hora, azotaron Santiago de Cuba y Holguín, segunda y tercera provincias más pobladas del país, respectivamente.

Caracas, 04 Dic. AVN.- A total 1,867 tons of humanitarian aid has been sent by Venezuela to sister nations of Cuba and Haiti, which are recovering after the devastation caused by hurricane Sandy late in October this year.

Interior Relations and Justice Minister Nestor Reverol said the information Monday, adding that a new shipment would be sent with 380 tons of humanitarian aid for the two nations, 200 for Cuba and 180 for Haiti.

CARACAS.—Venezuela envió otras 380 toneladas de ayuda humanitaria hacia Cuba y Haití, en un buque que partió desde el puerto la Guaira, en el estado Vargas, para contribuir a restañar daños ocasionados por el huracán Sandy.

Desde la terminal portuaria, el ministro de Relaciones Interiores y Justicia, Néstor Reverol, explicó que la carga contiene alimentos no perecederos, materiales médico-quirúrgicos, maquinarias para remover escombros y 250 mil módulos escolares, entre otros recursos.

21 November 2012: Hurricane Sandy hit the eastern region of Cuba hard when it passed through the country on 25 October. Sustained winds reached upwards of 200 km/h as Sandy lashed Santiago de Cuba and Holguin—Cuba’s second and third most populated provinces, respectively. The storm caused 11 deaths and affected an additional 3 million people (20 per cent of the country’s population). At least 200,000 homes were damaged and 17,000 destroyed.

CONTEXT

Cuba, despite having one of the best disaster preparedness systems in the region (it scored 1 in the GNA(Global Humanitarian Needs Assessment) index) has suffered severe damages to infrastructure and livelihoods affecting a large portion of the Cuban population due to the passage of Hurricane Sandy.