November 4, 2001 - Hurricane Michelle hits Cayo Largo

Long-time Cayo Largo regulars know this well... Our little cayo was badly shaken by Hurricane Michelle in early November 2001. Winds reaching more than 250 km/h accompanied by torrential rains sweep the island; 5 to 6 meters waves fall on its beaches; the storm surge causes a rise in water, flooding the island almost entirely. This category-4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, is the strongest and most devastating to hit Cayo Largo since the beginning of its tourist development in the early 80s. This fury leaves behind a devastated cayo, but the Cubans will not let themselves be defeated, they've seen this before!

During the few months following Michelle, we kept in touch with some Cubans who informed us of the current situation. Our Discussion Forum on Cayo Largo then spontaneously became the information center allowing future tourists and Cayo Largo lovers to learn more about the progress of the efforts to rebuild and restructure the tourist and logistical infrastructures of the island.

The chronological account that follows does not come from "official" sources. It is the result of the sum of information received through Cubans and tourists, and from our personal observations.

Hurricane Michelle, a timeline of events:

Thursday, November 1, 2001

It's now confirmed, the hurricane is heading directly on the Canarreos Archipelago, Cayo Largo will be hit! In the afternoon, about 500 tourists and 1500 workers are evacuated. Everything goes quickly and efficiently. Tourists are brought to Varadero.

Friday and Saturday, November 2 & 3, 2001

• 142 (brave!) Cubans stayed on the island to prepare and protect the infrastructure as much as possible in anticipation of the impending hurricane.
• The boats from the marina are sheltered in the canals north of the island.
• The night from Saturday to Sunday is already very tumultuous!

Sunday, November 4th, 2001

• In the morning Michelle hits Cayo Largo hard; the hurricane is then category 4! (the maximum being 5)
• In the afternoon the passage of the eye of the hurricane offers a short respite, everything is relatively calm and even the sun shines through for a short period of time.
• And then... Hell again! The other side of the cyclone sweeps Cayo Largo; causing even more damage to the vegetation and infrastructures than the first part.
• And as if it was not enough, then comes the flood! The storm surge causes a sudden rise in coastal waters. In the late afternoon, almost the entire low-relief island is submerged under about 2 meters of water. Fortunately all this water is absorbed quickly, in about 2 hours.
• Good news : No human loss, no serious injuries!

Other pictures here: Photo Album Hurricane Michelle

The following days

• Good weather returns, but the island is cut off from the world, without electricity or telephone, and the airport is unusable.
• A helicopter flight reveals the extent of the damage, everything is filmed and photographed (we had the chance to watch a part of this video and pictures).
• The damage is massive, lots of debris everywhere, roofs torn off, broken windows, uprooted or stripped trees, and... Oh NO! Our favorite hotel (Villa Capricho) is almost completely destroyed.
• At the marina, sections of the quays are floating everywhere (they will be recovered). Some boats are stranded, but recoverable.

November and December 2001

• The destination is closed for major cleaning, repair and reconstruction.
• It is at the cost of incredible effort and courage that the Cubans decide to do everything in their power to reopen Cayo Largo before the end of the year.
• The decision was made to destroy hotel Villa Capricho that was damaged beyond repairs.
• In mid-December: reopening of the airport to international flights, and the marina is again fully functional.
• The sea recedes, the beaches recover beautifully, especially on the western part of the island.
• December 20 - Reopening of the hotel Sol Cayo Largo. The hotel is as beautiful as before! But unfortunately, most tour operators have not yet resumed their Cayo Largo program. The hotel remains almost empty for a while.

February 2002

• February 2 - Reopening of Hotel Isla del Sur. This hotel has undergone major renovations and improvements. It was ready in time for the 20th anniversary celebrations of Cayo Largo as a tourist center. This hotel was the first to be built on the island.
• An Italian tour operator resumes its Cayo Largo program, booking all the rooms at the Isla del Sur.

March 2002

• March 4 - The Canadian carrier Air Transat resumes its flights to Cayo Largo from Montreal.
• March 18 - Reopening of hotel Villa Lindamar. The huts are as pretty as before!
• Cubana airlines resumes its international flights to Cayo Largo from Montreal.
• A few Canadian Tour Operators start again to offer travel packages to Cayo Largo

March 25 to April 8, 2002 - We visit Cayo Largo

• We stayed one week at Sol Cayo Largo and one week at Villa Lindamar.
• We are pleasantly surprised by the current state of the island. The hotels that are re-opened are spotless and the beaches are superb! But we also see that much remains to be done for the recovery of the other hotels, and that the vegetation has suffered a hard blow, several trees have disappeared. However, we already see proof that the efforts made by the Cubans and nature's ability to recover, will soon erase the traces of this unfortunate event.
• The hotel Villa Iguana seems unrecoverable.
• The construction site of the new Barcelo Hotel is temporarily abandoned to focus efforts on the renovation of existing hotels. (Later note: this hotel will finally open in 2003)

End of May 2002

• A German tour operator resumes its Cayo Largo program.

July 1 to 8, 2002 - We visit Cayo Largo again

• We stayed one week at Villa Lindamar.
• The only hotels reopened are still: Sol Cayo Largo, Hotel Isla del Sur and Villa Lindamar.
• Renovations of Hotel Pelicano, Villa Coral and Villa Soledad are under way.
• The construction of the new Barcelo hotel, which has been delayed, seems now to be progressing.
• We are told that all the hotels, except Villa Capricho and Villa Iguana, should be reopened before the end of 2002.
• The western beaches, Playa Paraiso and Playa Sirena, are definitely larger and more beautiful than before the hurricane!

October 2002 - Misfortune strikes again

• Two other hurricanes of lesser intensity (Isidore and Lili) hit Cayo Largo. They do not cause too much damage to the hotels, but they cause the disappearance of the beaches on the east side of the hotel zone.
• These hurricanes also have a negative impact on the progress of construction and renovation work.

December 2002

• December 15 - Reopening of hotels: Pelicano, Villa Coral and Villa Soledad. Every salvageable hotel is now reopen!
• The Villa Iguana is partially demolished, they will use the few remaining buildings to house hotels' staff. (Later note: Villa Iguana will remain closed for almost fifteen years, it re-opened in November 2016 after having been rebuilt and expanded.)
• There is nothing left of Villa Capricho, we are told that it will probably never be rebuilt. (Later note: A part of the land where Villa Capricho once stood is now occupied by the new section of Villa Iguana and by the Villa Bellarena).

Beggining of 2003

• The beaches on the east side of the hotel zone are slowly coming back. (Note: beaches in this area will remain fragile and unstable due to erosion caused by hurricanes)

Congratulations to the courage and determination of the Cubans who have gone through this ordeal!
Let's hope that never again will this little paradise be stricken so hard!

To learn more about Cayo Largo's hurricane history, and past disaster relief projects, please visit our Hurricanes webpage.

Lily & Normand
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