UN identifies Cuba as one of the most affected countries by natural disasters

HAVANA, Cuba, Jan 7 (ACN) The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has reported that Cuba is among the most affected nations in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of increased rainfall and storm waves associated with climate change.

The most affected countries have been Cuba, Mexico and Haiti with 110 storms, 5,000 deaths, 29 million people affected and 39 billion dollars in total damage, according to the information published by Notimex.
During the last 20 years, some 152 million people in the region have been affected by more than 1,000 volcanic events, landslides, hurricanes, fires, floods, droughts, extreme temperatures, earthquakes and storms, the publication added.
Regarding hurricanes, it stated that an average of 17 events per year have been registered and 23 of them have been category 5, classified as tropical cyclones with winds of more than 250 kilometers per hour (km/h), according to the Saffir-Simpson scale.
According to the report, the Caribbean is the second most vulnerable area in the world to natural disasters.
Cuban scientists predict a warmer and drier climate in the late 21st century, with possible increases in average temperatures of two to three degrees.
As part of the adaptation to climate change, the country is developing Task Life, a plan of the Cuban State for facing up to climate change, which has made progress in identifying vulnerable areas and taking action to adapt to that phenomenon.