It was only a small hurricane, said Fidel Castro, compared to the political storms currently sweeping the world

Neighbourhood committees cut down loose tree branches and checked on those who might be vulnerable - such as the elderly and the infirm.

A constant stream of experts, meteorologists, civil defence planners and medics were interviewed to advise and reassure.

As Michelle got closer, she got fiercer. The shops and supermarkets were packed as people bought extra food. There were no candles or torches to be had anywhere.

Change of direction

And Michelle kept us guessing. Which route would she take? At first she appeared to heading for the west of the island. Then as she bore down on the south-western Island of Youth, she moved slightly to the east.

Some breathed a little easier, others braced for the worst. More than a day before she was due to strike, the skies over Havana darkened ominously and the winds got stronger. There were less and less people on the streets. Residents brought flower pots and furniture in from their front porches and patios.

President Fidel Castro, in one of his long political speeches given as Michelle approached, said the Cuban people were ready. It was only a small hurricane, he said, compared to the political storms currently sweeping the world.

Violent storm

As darkness fell, the trees outside our house began shaking more violently. We again checked that our doors and windows were tightly shut. First the lights went out, then we lost our gas supply. Loose cables flapped against an outside wall.

We had a supply of matches and candles, and plenty of batteries for our transistor radio. "Will our roof stay on?" asked my four-year-old son. "Of course it will," I replied, trying to reassure him with a confidence I didn't really feel.

The wind grew stronger. The lid of our water tank flew off the roof and landed with a crash on the patio, shattering into many pieces. We watched the clouds hurtling across the sky then leapt with a start as a huge branch from the mango tree in our back garden snapped and hit the wall between ours and the neighbours' garden with a thud.

We slept nervously but the following morning woke to bright sunshine and a gentle breeze. Hurricane Michelle had passed over Cuba and was now at sea, heading towards the Bahamas.

People were emerging from their houses to assess the damage. The streets were littered with branches. Some roads were blocked by whole trees while telephone and electricity cables dangled in the air.

Aftermath

The damage across the whole country was severe, but remarkably only five people were reported killed. That figure may rise as isolated areas are reached - but not by much.

President Castro was also assessing the damage - here, there and everywhere.

In Havana, which only caught the edge of the storm, nearly 200 houses collapsed and more than 1,200 trees came down

He inspected the devastated citrus crop in Jaguey Grande, hugged an old woman who'd lost the roof of her house in Matanzas and even had time to visit foreign tourists sheltering from the storm in the resort of Varadero.

Everywhere he went people chanted his name. Solidarity, discipline and information were the three catchwords for the civil defence campaign and they were adhered to solidly to limit the loss of life.

Economic damage

But the damage to Cuba's economy will be profound. Cuba was already suffering a drop in tourism after the 11 September attacks on the United States.

The world prices of its two main exports, sugar and nickel, have fallen. Then Russia said it was closing its surveillance station in Cuba and ending the $200 million a year it pays in rent.

Just to make things worse, along came Hurricane Michelle. In Havana, which really only caught the edge of the storm, nearly 200 houses collapsed, more than 1,200 trees and hundreds of electricity and telephone poles came down. Over 35 schools were badly damaged.

The Chinese leader, Li Peng, who was visiting Cuba as the hurricane struck, has promised $600,000 in aid. Venezuela, Cuba's best friend in the region, has already sent humanitarian supplies.

Cubans stocked up on essentials before the hurricane hit

Power and water supplies are slowly but very surely being re-established, public transport services are being resumed and the hundreds of thousands of evacuees are returning to their homes.

A big cheer went up as the electricity returned to my neighbourhood, just as I'd finished writing this by candlelight.

Normality was resumed after more than 60 hours of groping around in the dark and eating nothing but cheese sandwiches.

Hurricane Michelle entered Cuba through the Bay of Pigs, where US-backed Cuban exiles tried to overthrow Fidel Castro 40 years ago. He, of course, made the link between the two adversaries, saying the hurricane reminded him of the 1961 invasion.

Cuba, it seems, has defied the odds on both occasions.