Thousands of Cubans remain without power, water, or proper shelter almost a month after Hurricane Melissa pummeled the island’s eastern region as one of the strongest Atlantic storms in history.

The U.N. reported that more than 53,000 people in Cuba have been unable to return to their homes, including 7,500 living in official shelters.

On a recent day, Altagracia Fonseca Rodríguez, a 65-year-old retiree, walked to a nearby river to wash some of the clothes she was able to salvage after the storm.

Before Melissa hit, she had evacuated and packed only two changes of clothes, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a towel.

“I packed things like someone would when they are going to be away from home for a day,” she said as she burst into tears. “I never imagined I would find my house in such a state of disrepair. It was sad, very painful.”

More than 2,300 people were evacuated from the Río Cauto area, with more than 750 staying in private homes, according to a Nov. 10 report published in the official newspaper, Granma.

“We were evacuated before the hurricane hit,” recalled Anisleydis Hidalgo Aldana.

“No one expected the water to reach the level it did.”

She is living in a military-style tent with her five-year-old daughter and two other families.

Fifty-eight people, including 30 children, are sharing 10 tents donated by the government of India.

The stench of the dead animals and sewage in the nearby canal is almost unbearable.

Many of the town’s residents lived by the river and lost their homes after Melissa cut through eastern Cuba, forcing nearby dams to release huge amounts of water.

Soaked mattresses, electrical appliances, clothing, food, furniture and other belongings remain scattered outside the homes.

In the southern coastal municipality of Guamá, several towns are still reeling from the storm.

Elizandra Sorrilla Duan and her husband searched through the rubble for photographs and personal belongings—whatever remained of her destroyed house.

“I packed clothes for myself and my children in a backpack; that’s all we have,” she said.

“It’s something none of us will ever forget.”

Sorrilla, along with her husband, two children, and their dog, Roki, are living out of donated food, toiletries, and even toys.

She said the government promised a new house somewhere else far from the beach, so she waits at a makeshift shelter.

“This isn’t suitable for living here, much less with two children,” she said.

“But since we have nothing, we have to stay here.”

While food, mattresses, roof tiles, and other items are being distributed to those affected by the storm, many needs remain unmet as relations between Cuba and the United States are at their most tense since President Donald Trump took office.

The Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Cuba, Francisco Pichón, explained that the U.N. has allocated over 74 million dollars to be distributed among housing, health, education, and sanitation.

However, he reminded that the eastern part of the island has still not recovered from losses caused by hurricanes Oscar and Sandy, both in 2024.

“In addition,” he said, “The fact that Cuba has restricted access to financing to respond to a hurricane makes the situation in this area very vulnerable.”

No storm-related deaths were reported in Cuba, where authorities evacuated more than 700,000 people from coastal areas before he storm.

Melissa also made landfall in Jamaica, where at least 45 deaths were reported, and its outer bands swiped Haiti, where at least 43 people were killed.

AP video by Ariel Fernández and Milexsy Durán