Cuban authorities have issued mandatory evacuation orders for tens of thousands of residents along the island’s southern and western coasts as Hurricane Melissa, a powerful and slow-moving Category 3 storm, churns toward the island. The country’s highly organized civil defense system activated its initial planning stages over the weekend and is now moving into a full-scale mobilization effort to protect lives in low-lying and flood-prone regions ahead of the storm’s projected landfall late Wednesday.
The large-scale operation is a familiar sight in Cuba, a nation that has developed one of the world’s most effective hurricane preparedness systems, honed by decades of experience with powerful tropical cyclones. The system relies on a multi-tiered alert protocol, widespread public education, and a community-level approach that ensures even the most vulnerable citizens are moved to safety. International observers have frequently cited Cuba as a model for disaster risk management, noting its ability to prevent mass casualties even when facing catastrophic storms. The success of the system hinges on the public’s trust in the national meteorological service and the clear, consistent instructions broadcast by the civil defense authority through state-run media.
A Timetabled Response to Imminent Threat
Cuba’s response to Hurricane Melissa is following a well-defined, four-stage protocol that begins long before the storm makes landfall. The first stage, the Informative Phase, was declared 72 hours before the hurricane’s anticipated arrival. During this period, the national media began broadcasting continuous warnings and updates from Cuba’s meteorological institute, which operates 15 provincial offices to track storms with precision. Civil protection committees at the municipal level were activated to review evacuation plans, inspect shelters, and confirm resource availability.
As Melissa tracked closer, the nation entered the Alert Phase, approximately 48 hours before projected landfall. This triggered the initial movement of people from the most at-risk areas. The government began organizing transportation, sending students home from schools, and preparing shelters with essential supplies. Following this phase, the Alarm Phase will be declared as the hurricane begins to directly impact the island, requiring the population to be either securely sheltered or already evacuated. The final stage, the Recovery Phase, will commence once the storm has passed, focusing on damage assessment, rescue operations, and a carefully managed return of the population to homes certified as safe.
Generations of Preparation and Public Trust
The foundation of Cuba’s defensive success is a deep-seated culture of hurricane awareness taught from a young age. Disaster preparedness is integrated into the national school curriculum, ensuring that all citizens understand the risks and the procedures to follow during a storm. This institutionalized knowledge is reinforced by mandatory annual drills and simulation exercises for the public, which helps streamline the evacuation process and identify vulnerable individuals who may need special assistance. This system was largely developed in response to the devastating Hurricane Flora in 1963, which served as a catalyst for creating the modern disaster risk reduction framework in place today.
This sustained focus on preparation has yielded remarkable results. According to a report from the humanitarian organization Oxfam, only 16 people were killed by six hurricanes that struck the island between 1996 and 2002. In another stark comparison, Hurricane Charley caused four deaths in Cuba, while the same storm resulted in 30 fatalities in Florida. These outcomes are not attributed to luck, but to a system that prioritizes proactive, large-scale evacuations and community compliance. In 2004 and 2005, facing Hurricanes Ivan and Dennis, Cuban authorities successfully evacuated more than 1.5 million people each time, emptying entire coastal zones and preventing any deaths from Ivan and only 10 from Dennis.
Coordinating a Nation’s Movement
The logistical execution of Cuba’s evacuation strategy is a highly localized affair. The system is organized down to the block level, where assigned individuals take a census of every resident. These local leaders are responsible for knowing who is being evacuated, where they are going, and who requires special assistance, such as the elderly, pregnant women, or those with disabilities. This granular approach ensures high compliance and helps account for every individual.
While government-run shelters in reinforced buildings like schools and hospitals play a critical role, a significant portion of the evacuated population seeks refuge with family or neighbors in safer locations. This reliance on social networks is a key component of the system’s effectiveness, reducing the burden on state facilities and reflecting a strong sense of community solidarity. For those who need it, the government provides transportation, using buses to move people from threatened areas to designated shelters staffed with medical personnel and stocked with food and water.
Science and Communication in Lockstep
The entire operation is guided by scientific data and a robust communication network. Cuba’s national meteorological institute is a well-respected institution with 68 weather stations across the island that provide detailed tracking and forecasting. This scientific body shares data with international partners, including U.S. scientists, to refine storm track projections. As a hurricane nears, weather reports are broadcast with increasing frequency, moving from every six hours to every three hours to keep the public informed of the latest developments.
Under a hurricane warning, all state-controlled media outlets, including television and radio, are fully subordinated to the national defense council. This ensures that the population receives a single, unified message with clear instructions on what measures to take. This centralized communication strategy eliminates conflicting information and is crucial for executing timely and orderly evacuations. The warnings reach an estimated 96% of television audiences and 97% of radio listeners, ensuring near-universal awareness of the approaching threat.
Securing Infrastructure and Resources
Preparations for Hurricane Melissa extend beyond moving people. In accordance with established protocols, authorities work to protect critical infrastructure and pre-position vital resources. In the areas identified as most vulnerable, emergency electrical generators, supplies of clean drinking water, and additional medical personnel have been deployed in advance of the storm’s arrival. This ensures that essential services can be maintained even if the primary grid is damaged.
Community members are assigned specific responsibilities for managing these resources, empowering them to take an active role in their own protection. This decentralized approach to resource management builds resilience at the local level. As Melissa approaches, teams are also working to secure property, board up windows, and clear potential debris from streets and drainage systems. The comprehensive planning, which involves every level of society from national government officials to individual citizens, is designed not only to save lives but also to mitigate the storm’s physical and economic impact as much as possible.
