People wait for transportation at a bus stop in Matanzas, Cuba, on October 18, 2024, due to a nationwide power outage due to a power grid failure.
Antonio Levy | AFP | Getty Images
The whole place has a power outage. cuba island A major power plant malfunctioned on Friday, affecting the country of 10 million people, according to Cuba’s energy ministry.
Earlier in the day, the government tried to maintain power by closing schools and keeping most government workers at home to save energy. But it wasn’t enough, and by 11 a.m. the largest power plant was without power, causing grid failure.
The communist country’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, write on X They give “absolute priority” to fixing the problem and “will not take any breaks” until power is restored.
Cubans have been grappling with rolling blackouts for months. In some provinces outside the capital Havana, many people faced power outages lasting as long as 12 hours at a time.
Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero on Thursday blamed the ongoing power outages on deteriorating infrastructure, fuel shortages and growing needs of the people.
On October 18, 2024, Havana, Cuba, there was a power outage across the island of Cuba, and people gathered outside.
Norris Perez | Reuters
While demand for electricity increases, oil supplies are severely constrained. Cuba’s ally and main oil supplier Venezuela has reduced the volume of cargo it sends to the island. Oil shipments from other countries such as Russia and Mexico have also been significantly reduced.
Authorities said they did not know how long it would take to restore power.
This particular moment worries many Cubans. Walking through a Havana neighborhood, people expressed shock at the situation, with one resident saying they felt the country had reached “rock bottom.”
“It’s incredible,” said a Havana resident who declined to give his name. “I don’t see a solution to this problem.”
A woman works in a restaurant during a power outage in Havana, Cuba, on October 17, 2024.
Norris Perez | Reuters
One woman in Old Havana said she feared the situation would get worse. “I’m really concerned that we may not be at the bottom of this power crisis yet,” she told NBC News.
The Cuban government has long Blame the U.S. for decades of embargo There are many economic shortcomings on the island. The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact on the island’s tourism industry, one of the most lucrative sources of revenue for the country’s dominant economy, as sanctions were tightened under former President Donald Trump.
The economic crisis has made life difficult for ordinary Cubans, with shortages of food, medicine and fuel.
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