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Cuba: Havana's electricity went out for hours after a fire in a fuel depot

2022-08-09T07:20:18.292Z


A fuel depot on Cuba's north coast has been ablaze for days after a lightning strike. The island's already shaky power supply is apparently on the verge of collapse.


Enlarge image

Burning fuel depot near the port of Matanzas (photo from August 8)

Photo: IMAGO/Xinhua

After the explosions in a fuel depot in Matanzas, Cuba, emergency services are still unable to get the fire under control.

As the AP news agency reported, the fire spread to a third oil tank on Monday evening (local time).

Firefighters had previously tried to cool the tank and prevent the flames from spreading.

In the industrial area near the coastal city of Matanzas, a good 100 kilometers east of Havana, a flash of lightning caused a fuel tank to explode on Friday.

According to the authorities, there were 125 injured, at least one dead and 14 missing firefighters.

Task forces from Mexico and Venezuela support the local firefighters in extinguishing the fire.

According to the AP, almost 5,000 people had to leave their homes near the site, and the massive column of smoke could be seen as far as the capital, Havana.

Power plant temporarily shut down

The Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric power plant near Matanzas was temporarily taken off the grid on Monday – according to the government, due to a lack of water due to the extinguishing work.

The already tense power supply on the island is apparently getting worse.

In parts of the capital Havana, the power went out for hours on Monday.

In the Vedado district, where there are several embassies, the lights went out for around four hours on Monday evening (local time).

For the time being, there was no official information on the cause.

Controlled power outages began in Havana last Wednesday.

In addition to other measures to save electricity, the provincial government had announced that these would take place every three days and last from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Cuba has been struggling with frequent power outages for months

In the rest of the country, there had been power outages for months, some of which lasted more than twelve hours a day, according to those affected on social media.

The situation is also politically sensitive: frequent power cuts in the hottest time of the year were one of the reasons for the anti-government demonstrations in July 2021 in the socialist Caribbean country.

fek/dpa/AP

Source: spiegel

All life articles on 2022-08-09

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