The unexpected darkness that covered Spain and Portugal on April 28th caused surprise, chaos, and, of course, memes from Cuba.
While Spain was reeling from the worst blackout in its recent history, with only 35% of electrical consumption operational and emergency measures activated, many in Cuba responded with the only thing that never fails in times of crisis: humor.
Social media on the island was flooded with jokes, parodies, and posts that turned the European blackout into a national topic.
"Oy! If there's a need to go clean the tubes at the Felton in Spain... Let me know," said Edmundo Dantés Junior on Facebook, referring to one of the most commonly mentioned maintenance tasks by Cuban authorities in their reports about thermoelectric plants, particularly the Felton in Holguín.
The parody account of the Cuban Electric Union (@UNE__CUBA), which specializes in making people laugh about the tragedies of the national energy system, was the epicenter of humor. Among the highlighted messages:
"The generation deficit today has been so significant that it has impacted part of Europe."
"The worldwide blackout is heating up, the Europeans have come on strong and want to take the lead. A general blackout is expected due to the simultaneous shutdown of Felton and La Guiteras. Trust the UNE team, we will not lose our position at the top of the group."
"At the request of Pedro Sánchez, a brigade of linemen is currently heading to Spain to support the country's energy contingency. He has also asked that Lázaro Guerra and Bernardo Espinosa join the expedition to report on the power outages in La Sexta."
"Power outages of 72 hours that we experience, not that nonsense of 12 hours they have in Europe."
Another viral post announced, in a satirical tone, the creation of a "Click Patrol" contingent that would travel to Europe to investigate the blackout, made up of Cubans with Spanish passports.
They claimed that the head of the mission would be the official journalist Bernardo Espinosa, a prominent figure who reports daily on the state of Cuba's electrical system.
In another gem of graphic humor, a new blackout schedule was announced for Spain and Portugal, as if they were just more Cuban provinces.
The jokes didn't stop there. "The Arsenio Martínez Campos disconnected in Spain," some would say, imitating the technical language of the daily reports from the UNE, and the Cuban regime's tendency to name power plants after national heroes.
A fictitious cover of the Dramma [a play on words referring to the official newspaper Granma] even circulated, featuring headlines like "Widespread blackout in Spain after La Guiteras receives Spanish passport," alluding to Cuba's most iconic thermoelectric power plant.
Beyond the laughter, Cubans could not help but compare the institutional reactions between the two countries.
In Spain, the government recognized the seriousness of the event, immediately launched an investigation, and President Pedro Sánchez stated that no hypothesis is being ruled out. Meanwhile, in Cuba, power outages are part of daily life, with statements from the UNE often causing more confusion than clarity.
The contrast is as evident as it is humorous: while a blackout lasting hours paralyzes entire countries in Europe, in Cuba a decade of systematic blackouts has become part of the everyday landscape... and now, it serves as fuel for the best of criollo humor.
Because if one thing is clear, it is that in Cuba the light may go out, but the spark never fades.
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