Havana
CNN
—
Cuba’s electrical grid suffered a total collapse on Monday, the country’s electricity operator reported, marking the latest nationwide blackout in recent years, and the first since the US shut off oil supplies to the island of approximately 10 million people.
Work is being carried out to restore electricity throughout the country, said the state operator.
Nationwide blackouts have been frequently reported in recent years. Cuban officials have previously attributed them to US economic sanctions, although critics have also pointed to a lack of investment in the island’s deteriorating generation system.
Cuba relies heavily on oil for electricity generation. The blockage of fuel shipments has worsened the country’s energy crisis, causing intermittent power outages, rationing of medical supplies and a decline in tourism, officials have said. Fuel prices have skyrocketed so much that gasoline can cost up to US$9 per liter on the unofficial market, meaning it costs more than US$300 to fill a car’s gas tank, more than most Cubans earn in a year.
CNN has contacted the White House for comment.
“US (government) officials should feel very happy about the damage caused to every Cuban family,” Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío said in response to Monday’s blackout.
On Saturday, residents of the central Cuban city of Morón took to the streets to protest problems with electricity supply and access to food.
Trump says he could have “the honor of taking Cuba” without offering details
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said on Friday that no oil had been delivered to the island in the last three months. He also said Friday that Cuban officials have held talks with the United States to “identify bilateral problems that need a solution.”
“The impact (of the blockade) is tremendous. It manifests itself in the most brutal way in these energy problems,” said the president. “This causes anguish among the population.”
In response to the energy crisis, the Government has announced emergency measures, including the reduction of school hours, the postponement of large sporting and cultural events and the cutting of transport services.
Many government-run hospitals have cut services, and a lack of fuel and running garbage trucks has caused garbage to pile up in entire neighborhoods.
On almost every corner, conversations center on when power outages are occurring and for how long. At night in Havana, the stars are usually clearly visible, because most of the city is enveloped in almost total darkness.
Fuel sales at government-run gas stations are now severely restricted. Only tourists, diplomats and Cubans who have been granted a slot through an online system can stock up, usually after waiting for hours.
Recent data shows a sharp decline in internet traffic in Cuba amid the energy crisis, according to Doug Madory, director of internet analysis at network monitoring company Kentik. “At the most recent measurement, Cuba is at only a third of its normal traffic volume at this time of day,” he told CNN.
Canada’s largest airline, Air Canada, announced last month that it would suspend flights to Cuba due to a shortage of aviation fuel on the island. The pause in service is expected to last until Nov. 1, he said.
President Donald Trump suggested Monday that his administration was open to “taking Cuba,” though he offered few details about what a military operation against the country would look like when pressed by reporters, calling it a “very weakened nation.”
“You know, all my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba, when will the United States have the honor of taking Cuba? That’s a great honor,” he said in remarks from the Oval Office. “Take Cuba in some way, yes, take Cuba — I mean, whether I liberate it, take it, I think I can do with it whatever I want.”
Protesters in Cuba throw stones at a Communist Party office
But, asked whether a US military operation in Cuba would resemble the capture of Maduro in Venezuela in January or the US’s ongoing military conflict with Iran, Trump told reporters: “I can’t tell you that.”
“I can tell you that they are talking to us — it is a failed nation,” he said. “They have no money, they have no oil, they have nothing.”
Last week, Trump said at the White House that it is only a “matter of time” before Cuban-Americans can return to their home country, hinting that is next on his administration’s agenda following the ongoing war with Iran.
This story has been updated with more information and Trump’s statements.
