New images of the fire that broke out near the Hotel Nacional.

The impressive plume of smoke that originated this Saturday in the vicinity of the Hotel Nacional and generated great concern among the neighbors was recorded and shared on social networks by passersby and residents of the area.

Videos circulating on Facebook and YouTube show the thick smoke that enveloped the emblematic Havana hotel, as well as the confusion and panic that gripped some in the early moments of the disaster.

A neighbor from O street between 19 and 21 managed to film what happened from his balcony. His images allowed us to appreciate the evolution of the fire, which the neighbor attributed to the explosion of a boiler.

The recording captured several explosions throughout the event, including the sound of broken glass. It also captured the arrival of the firefighters, who drove in the opposite direction of traffic on O street while several vehicles (cars, motorcycles, taxis) quickly left the vicinity of the hotel.

Other recordings made from different points in the city allowed us to see, up close and from afar, the imposing column of smoke caused by the fire, as well as the dimensions of a black smoke cloud that reached the height of the tallest nearby buildings. The strong wind blowing over the capital this Saturday accelerated the spread of smoke and flames.

Official media and hotel officials initially provided contradictory information about the incident. According to Granma, "the forces battling the flames confirmed that there have been no explosions."

On his part, Deivid Silva Alfonso, commercial director of the Hotel Nacional, stated that the fire was "of small proportions," even though "it caused a very large cloud of smoke that alerted neighbors in the community and some clients."

In a video uploaded to Facebook, the manager located the origin of the flames "in the area between the hotel parking lot and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security", and stated that the fire broke out around 3:00 PM (local time), outside the tourist facility.

In his statement, the manager assured that "all the vehicles that were in the parking lot were promptly evacuated and did not suffer any kind of damage."

However, the newspaper Trabajadores reported that "the strong wind accelerated the spread of the fire, which reached areas of the parking lot, where several electric motorcycles and areas of the rental offices burned."

An article published by Cubadebate reported statements from the Fire Department of the Republic of Cuba, indicating that "the strong wind accelerated the spread of the fire, which reached areas of the parking lot, where several electric motorcycles and areas of the rental offices burned."

"The forces fighting the flames confirmed that no explosions have occurred," the statement indicated. However, the assertion contradicts the testimonies of neighbors who claimed to have heard explosions during the fire.

According to state media, the incident did not cause "loss of human lives so far."