.- In a letter to all Catholics in Havana, Cardinal Jaime Ortega Alamino, called for solidarity with the victims of Hurricane Gustav, which “caused heavy damage in the eastern region of the province of Pinar del Rio and particularly on the Isle of Youth, where the damage borders on catastrophic.”
Cardinal Ortega called for everyone to make an effort to contribute to the relief effort. “Last Saturday our country was hit by Hurricane Gustav, a powerful storm which media reports have shown us has caused heavy damage in the eastern region of the province of Pinar del Rio and particularly on the Isle of Youth, where the damage borders on catastrophic,” he said.
“I invite each one of you to extend once again, from your poverty, a charitable hand to these brothers and sisters of ours. For this purpose I ask that each one of our parishes and chapels take up a collection” and collect relief supplies to be distributed through Caritas to the affected families, the cardinal said.
He said the aid collected would be sent to the parish of Our Lady of Carmel in Havana, from which it will be sent to the devastated region.
