Havana - Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel expressed on Tuesday the most heartfelt condolences to the Prime Minister of Bahamas, Hubert A. Minnis, for the loss of human lives and material damage caused by Hurricane Dorian, which ravaged the Caribbean nation.  "On behalf of the Cuban people and government, I extend to you our most heartfelt condolences, which I convey through you to the Bahamian people and to the families of the victims.” reads a letter Diaz-Canel sent to PM Minnis.

In the document, the Cuban president expresses the Cuban authorities’ willingness to cooperate, within its possibilities, in mitigating the damage caused by the natural disaster.

According to Bahamian Red Cross spokesman Matthew Cochrane, more than 13,000 houses, or about 45% of the homes on Grand Bahama and Abaco, were believed to be severely damaged or destroyed.

U.N. officials said more than 60,000 people on the hard-hit islands will need food, and the Red Cross said some 62,000 will need clean drinking water.

As of 8 p.m. EDT, Dorian was centered about 180 kilometers east of Cape Canaveral, Florida. It was moving northwest at 7 kph. Hurricane-force winds extended up to 95 kilometers from its center.