The impact of Hurricane Melissa in western Jamaica generated a volume of debris that could fill 480,000 standard truckloads, according to data shared this Thursday by officials from the United Nations Development Program. Nearly 5 million tons of debris are blocking efforts to reach about 30 communities that remain isolated and in need of critical aid and the restoration of vital services. Some 90,000 families suffered damage to the roofs of their homes, which represents a challenging number in terms of resources. "We need to act fast because delay means blocked roads, vital services at a standstill, lost income and increased suffering," said the UNDP's top official in the Caribbean nation, where more than 180 shelters continue to house about 2,500 people. Among the effects of Melissa, which entered Jamaica as a powerful category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, is that half of the country remains without power, although Kingston reports it is working urgently to restore the critical service.
Above 30 people died in Jamaica, while in Haiti, 13 people are still reported missing, and 43 are dead. Instead, Cuba reported no fatalities, but the damage is considerable regarding infrastructure and crops. The government of the largest of the Antilles recognized today the support provided by Spain, the Dominican Republic, and Colombia for its incipient recovery efforts, particularly through the sending of humanitarian aid to the victims. Madrid sent 145,000 euros in supplies, such as family kitchen sets. The government of Gustavo Petro sent 240 tons of aid to the port of the hard-hit southeastern province of Santiago de Cuba, including food, emergency shelter tents, and milk. Meanwhile, Santo Domingo recently sent a plane with four tons of humanitarian aid. But no further information has emerged about the efforts of the Cuban Catholic Church to act as a channel for the arrival of 3 million dollars in humanitarian aid from the United States, a dynamic occurring under tension due to the complex dispute we have discussed many times here.
Climate change boosted Hurricane Melissa's destructive winds and rain, analysis finds https://t.co/WDN1he8eus
— Dánica Coto (@danicacoto) November 6, 2025
Venezuela/Cuba
Venezuela, it seems, is sending very little crude oil to Cuba, as China continues to receive 8 out of every 10 barrels exported by what was once Havana's major benefactor in this area, especially during the lifetime of Hugo Chávez. Meanwhile, close to 16% of October's shipments ended up at US refineries via Chevron, which continues to operate in the oil-rich nation under a limited license from the Treasury Department. According to Reuters, only about 11,000 barrels per day of refined petroleum products reached Cuba, which is just over 1%. All of this is happening while the country faces a harsh energy landscape, due both to the decrepit state of its power generation infrastructure, primarily thermal, and the sheer lack of fuel for the so-called distributed generation network.
Breaking on Trump, Venezuela 👇
Senate Democrats failed to draw enough Republican support to block the Trump administration from conducting military strikes against suspected drug traffickers within or outside of Venezuela without an explicit authorization from Congress. https://t.co/qvzHg9sHEB
— Bloomberg Government (@BGOV) November 6, 2025
This is all for today’s report.
