Irma’s waves ravage Caribbean

HAVANA — Powerful waves and storm surge from Hurricane Irma topped Havana’s iconic Malecon seawall and left thousands of homes, businesses and hotels swamped Sunday, even as the storm moved away from the island.

Similar scenes played out across the Caribbean, where the storm devastated islands before setting its sights on Florida and relief workers passed out water in places such as the U.S. Virgin Islands and St. Martin.

There were no immediate reports of fatalities in Cuba, where the government prides itself on preparedness and said it had evacuated more than 1 million people.

Authorities warned that the floodwaters could linger for more than a day, and there was as-yet uncalculated damage to sugarcane and banana fields in central Cuba and to northern cays studded with all-inclusive resorts, potentially dealing a major blow to the country’s key tourism industry.

The storm ripped roofs off homes, collapsed buildings and caused floods along hundreds of miles of coast. Irma has killed at least 24 people in the region, leaving officials scrambling to bring aid to shattered communities.

In Havana, home to some 2 million residents, central neighborhoods along the coast suffered the brunt of the flooding.

Waves as high as 20 feet continued to pound Havana, and Civil Defense Col. Luis Angel Macareno warned that the flooding would persist into Monday.

Ramon Espinosa / Associated Press People walk through flooded streets in Havana after Hurricane Irma blew through Cuba, flooding hundreds of miles of coastline.

British Ministry of Defense via Associated Press Cars wrecked by Hurricane Irma are strewn about the British Virgin Islands. The Caribbean paradise islands took the full force of Irma when it was at its strongest.