Preserving life, a priority in Camagüey amid the threat of Melissa

Camagüey, Oct. 27- Preserving the most sacred thing the Revolution holds—human lives—is the main priority in Camagüey, amid the approaching Hurricane Melissa, affirmed Walter Simón Noris, president of the Provincial Defense Council.

He called for strict compliance with the measures corresponding to the current phase and emphasized person-to-person communication as a priority, a task in which the Zone Defense Councils play an essential role.

In each territory, he said, the strengths in food production in the different processing centers must be exploited, and in particular, he indicated to review the charcoal demands that the people need today, This should be monitored more closely to ensure that supply reaches more people at affordable prices.

For his part, Jorge Enrique Sutil Sarabia, vice president of that body, insisted on protecting the population, considering that the rains forecast for the northern region could cause runoff into the rivers that flow through the city of Camagüey and affect those living in surrounding communities.

Sutil Sarabia also warned about the danger the winds would pose to the housing stock, which is classified as regular to poor, while reflecting on the need to continue moving pregnant women, infants, children, the elderly, and other at-risk groups, especially those with wandering behavior, to safe places.

The discipline and responsibility of families in the care of minors, he also called for, because it is essential to avoid bathing in streams, rivers, bridges and other areas of danger during the rains.

Similarly, he indicated to protect the population living in places downstream of the reservoirs and to provide for the protocol established to put the island into operation if at some point the National Electroenergetic System collapses.

In Camagüey, Yennis León Mayedo, head of the Provincial Commission for the Protection of People, reported that 223 institutions have been set up to house the most vulnerable families in the face of the meteorological phenomenon, and of these, 36 are ready to receive the population.

To date, more than six thousand Camagüey natives, including pregnant women, children, seniors, and people with disabilities, are already safely sheltered in designated facilities and in the homes of relatives and friends.

He emphasized that the majority of the centers authorized to house the population are educational institutions, where, in addition to meeting the necessary conditions, a staff with human quality and experience in this type of contingencies works. (Text and photo: Yadira Núñez Figueredo/ACN)