Baracoa, Cuba's oldest city, flooded by 16-foot waves

Baracoa, Cuba's oldest city, flooded by 16-foot waves
800 Evacuated; No Deaths Reported

Ray Sanchez | Direct from Havana
1:10 PM EDT, March 21, 2008
Havana, Cuba

Calm returned to the eastern coastal city of Baracoa today, one day
after 16-foot waves destroyed parts of its seaside promenade and
resulted in the evacuation of more than 800 people, authorities said. No
deaths were reported.

"Life is returning to normal and we're assessing the damage," said a
civil defense official in Baracoa, who asked not to be identified
because he was unauthorized to speak to the media.

State television Friday broadcast images of the sea ripping apart chunks
of the picturesque malecon seawall in Baracoa, the first city founded on
the island, located 560 miles east of Cuba's capital. On the streets,
people were seen trudging in waist-high water.

All this, authorities said, happened without a single drop of rain
falling on Baracoa. "It was very strange," the civil defense official said.

The provincial newspaper Venceremos said it was the worst natural
disaster to strike the area in 50 years.

Leonardo Maura, a meteorologist, said the disaster was caused by the
giant swells of a boreal storm originating in the Atlantic north of Cuba.

Authorities said at least 20 homes were destroyed as well as day care
center and a farmers market. In addition, there was damage to the runway
at the local airport, forcing the cancellation of flight.

More than 100 homes were damaged along with the La Rusa Hotel. Civil
defense authorities toured the city Friday to assess the damage.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/cuba/sfl-0321havanadaily2,0,1377653.column