Six people have died in Cuba as a result of Hurricane Oscar, which hit the island on Sunday bringing winds and heavy rains and was downgraded to a tropical storm on Monday.
Cuba’s President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez wrote on X:
“There is an emergency situation in the municipalities of Imias and San Antonio del Sur. According to preliminary reports, six people have died in areas that have historically been arid.”
Mass blackouts across the Caribbean have sparked several small protests as the island prepares for a fourth night of mass blackouts and a stern government warns that any disturbances will be punished.
Several dozen people took part in protests in urban neighbourhoods such as Santos Suarez and downtown Havana. Some banged pots and pans in the streets, while others demonstrated from balconies.
Protesters, who said they had no water, littered at least one street with rubbish. Homemaker Mayde Quinones, 55, who cares for her mother-in-law, who is in her 80s, said:
“The country has completely halted. This hurts everyone, but the elderly most of all.”
Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz has declared a “state of energy emergency” due to the ongoing blackouts in the country. He and the country’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, blamed the US for the energy crisis, saying sanctions and the blockade were limiting access to credit and spare parts for power plants.
As of Sunday evening, the capital Havana was completely plunged into darkness, with only some businesses, institutions, and homes running on their own localised fuel generators. The government cancelled classes in schools until Wednesday, citing the hurricane and the ongoing energy crisis. Officials said only essential services workers should go to work.
