As the Atlantic hurricane season is still on a roll with almost a month left to spare, a new hurricane has emerged and has left its victims in devastation. A week ago, the Floridians were facing the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, however this week, the Cubans are being struck by the sudden Hurricane Oscar.
As of October 23rd 2024, Hurricane Oscar has left six dead in Cuba, even though it is only a category one hurricane. According to BBC News, not only has this hurricane caused lots of land disruption, but it has also catalyzed a ton of civilian turmoil amongst the affected communities. The Cubans living where the power has gone out are taking to the streets to participate in an unauthorized protest chanting to turn on the lights.
“I feel that a reason for this civilian turmoil could be because the government didn’t inform them of the severity of this hurricane,” said Seher Patel, a junior taking AP Environmental Science, from Briar Woods High School.
According to USA Today, Oscar has been able to evade detection due to its size, which means that any type of preparation that could have been done, was done at a very late timing. However, although the storm itself is smaller, its strength is actually advanced which leads to it being so violent and dangerous. The National Weather service in Melbourne, Florida further predicts strong waves hitting Florida’s coast due to Oscar’s power.
“As a student taking environmental science, I find it very interesting that even advanced technology wasn’t able to pick up a hurricane, even if it was a forceful one. It makes me think about how civilians could prepare under those types of circumstances” said Sanskriti Talla, a junior from Briar Woods High School taking AP Environmental Science.
Lastly, AP news claims that Oscar is the smallest hurricane on record, and it is shocking for the amount of damage it has done to Cuba and anywhere else that it has hit so far. Going back to its unique size, AP news states that it is actually not often that the public sees a colossal failure in forecasting when it comes to tropical storms.
Overall, Hurricane Oscar is just one more hurricane to add to the many tropical storms hitting the Atlantic this hurricane season. It is important to keep in mind that these types of forecasting mistakes will happen, and that preparation for storms before the season starts is crucial under these circumstances.
