Hurricanes and the Making of Caribbean History
The 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane1899 San Ciriaco hurricane hit Puerto Rico, whose economy relied on coffee. The crop had already been facing problems with a decrease in prices and competing countries, but the hurricane wiped out any chance of rebounding from the losses of the previous years. The winds stripped the berries from the trees and the coffee exports of 1899 were only 10 percent of the average export. The losses amounted to 12 million dollars in revenue from 1899 to 1901. This left a dismal outlook on the future for farmers. Sugar was also affected by the storm, although the results were not as drastic. Only a third of the sugar crop could be harvested in 1899, but the soil was reinvigorated. The storm only affected the older haciendas, which would have been retired soon regardless of the hurricane. This allowed for newer technologies to be introduced to the sugar system and U.S. involvement increased. Overall, San Ciriaco helped and hurt the agriculture of Puerto Rico.
Hurricane Inez
In Guadeloupe, which was the first area the hurricane affected, residents evacuated to schools set up as shelters. Pan American World Airways canceled flights to the region. When Inez was near peak intensity, the NHC warned residents in southern Haiti and the Dominican Republic of the danger posed by the hurricane. The agency emphasized that the eye was visible on radar to calm tension of an unexpected change in track. In general, hurricane warnings were issued 24 hours in advance, with the exception of southeastern Florida due to the hurricane's slowing track. Overall, 250,000 people evacuated along the path of Inez. At Guantánamo Bay, officials ordered residents at the naval base to evacuate to storm shelters. Large ships at the port there were moved to Jamaica before the storm struck. Throughout eastern Cuba, Premier Fidel Castro ordered about 125,000 people to evacuate in low-lying areas, mostly in Oriente Province. United States Air Force tracking stations in the Bahamas were secured or moved to safer locations. Residents in the Florida Keys boarded up windows and store fronts, and hundreds of people evacuated to a shelter in Key West. In southeastern Florida, government offices and schools closed.