Cuban authorities ordered the evacuation of 50,000 people in Pinar del Rio, the westernmost province on the island, which is expected to be hit by Hurricane Ian with heavy rains and winds above 100 mph late Monday and early Tuesday.
Ian continues to strengthen and could reach the island as a Category 2 hurricane and could cause “significant wind and storm surge impacts,” the National Hurricane Center said.
Since noon, residents were already seeing the impact of the rains and wind on the Isle of Youth, on Cuba’s southwestern coast. The ferry between Gerona, the Isle of Youth’s main city, and Batabanó, a town in the Mayabeque province, was suspended as the hurricane could cause waves as high as 23 feet.
