BBC’s Will Grant on Irma Aftermath: ‘It’s an Extremely Difficult Time for Cubans’

DICKERSON: Irma is only just now hitting the United States, but the damage she’s already left behind is massive.

The island of Barbuda was decimated, according to the Red Cross, considered uninhabitable, with 100 percent of the infrastructure gone. Some parts of Saint Martin saw more than 70 percent of homes damaged or in ruin. And Cuba was battered Saturday, leaving homes destroyed and massive flooding on its northern coast.

Our BBC partner Will Grant filed this report from Havana.

WILL GRANT, BBC REPORTER: Well, after several days of waiting and watching, Cubans finally felt the full force of Hurricane Irma as she hit the island as a Category 5 storm, one of the most powerful hurricanes to hit Cuba since the 1930s.

Of course, she brought with her vast amount of rains, storm surges that partially submerged whole villages, and of course the high winds that you can see at the moment that ripped roofs entire communities.

Homes all over these islands are currently without electricity. It’s an extremely difficult time for Cubans across the island, but along the northern coast, it’s going to take some time for them to recover.

This is Will Grant for the BBC for FACE THE NATION.