Forecasters expected the storm to later weaken over Cuba before emerging in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane.

The island's electricity plants had already suffered a series of outages, even before forecasters warned that a "life-threatening" storm was about to strike.

Massive waves lashed the shores of Havana as sharp winds and rain whipped at the city's historic center, leaving trees littered on flooded streets on Wednesday evening. Listen to Story Cuba issued ...