Paula Weakens to Tropical Depression over Cuba

Paula Weakens to Tropical Depression over Cuba

by Nelson Acosta (Reuters)

Tropical Storm Paula weakened to a tropical depression over Cuba on Friday after whipping the island’s capital and its western tobacco-growing province with driving rain and high winds.

There were no immediate reports of deaths, injuries or serious damage, indicating the island nation was spared the destruction it suffered from several powerful hurricanes in 2008.

But many areas of tobacco-growing Pinar del Rio and much of the capital Havana, a city of 2.2 million people, awoke without power on Friday after the storm knocked out electricity.

Some Havana residents were surprised by the ferocity of the storm. “We weren’t expecting it to be so strong and intense,” said Niurka, a bank employee who only gave her first name.

“Today, for example, there’s no power in the bank and we can’t offer service. It’s also flooded so we need to get the water out,” she said. “I haven’t had power at home for over 12 hours, and they said it was a ‘light’ storm.”

Paula was the ninth hurricane of the busy 2010 Atlantic season and had reached Category 2 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of intensity before it was downgraded.

It was moving eastward and carrying top sustained winds of 35 miles per hour (55 kph), the hurricane center said on Friday. That’s below the tropical storm threshold of 39 mph (63 kph).

“Additional weakening is forecast during the next 48 hours and Paula is expected to degenerate to a remnant low pressure area by Saturday,” the Miami-based center said.

Storm warnings and watches in Cuba and the Florida Keys were discontinued.