Three dead and six injured is the toll from a brutal traffic accident that occurred Thursday afternoon following the collision between a state jeep of the PCC and a car in the province of Santiago de Cuba.
A brief video posted on social media confirmed the scale of the disaster and the extensive deployment of patrols and authorities in the area.
The accident occurred on the stretch of the National Highway located between the Santiago de Cuba municipalities of San Luis and Palma Soriano, specifically at the so-called Bridge 4, according to on Facebook by the Municipal Administration Council (CAM) of Palma Soriano.
The brief official note did not identify the deceased nor did it mention any injuries.
It was Aris Arias Batalla, the Operations and Relief Officer of the Ministry of Public Health in Santiago de Cuba, who pointed out that there are six injured people who had been transferred to the provincial hospital Saturnino Lora, in the capital city.
Arias Batalla also mentioned that government authorities from the region went to the scene of the incident, and that forensic medicine specialists and experts are working at the site to determine the causes.
In another recent post, he clarified that the injured are classified as "green code," meaning they are not in life-threatening condition.
Jeep of the provincial PCC, one of the vehicles involved in the accident
The journalist Yosmany Mayeta indicated that the jeep -with license plate B044 409- would belong to the Communist Party headquarters in Contramaestre. Indeed, one of the vehicle's doors confirms that it belongs to the PCC.
In a more recent post, the communicator specified that the first secretary of the PCC of Contramaestre was traveling in the jeep, who would be one of the injured, although this information has not been officially confirmed.
In the case of the blue vehicle that was struck by the state car, it was left in such a condition that it is impossible to determine whether it was a state or private vehicle, although it appears to be a Russian car.
Mayeta Labrada shared striking images on social media that reveal the extent of the accident.
He specified—based on witness testimony—that the occupants of the blue car were trapped among the twisted metal, in a scene that many described as "dantesque."
"The pool of blood was extensive... a woman lay lifeless, and the others had bloodied faces. It was heartbreaking," recounted a young man who helped carry the wounded amid screams and laments.
Other passengers traveling on a local bus also recounted the magnitude of the impact.
"The screams, the glass, the blows… I don’t want to remember that. The people in the blue car were crushed as if a machine had bitten them," revealed another witness quoted in the statement.
Mayeta noted that the mere fact that one of the vehicles involved is directly linked to the Communist Party of Cuba has been enough for the case to be handled with special discretion.
“In a country where censorship extends even to death, the lives of its citizens seem to weigh less than the name of the Party on a plaque. While the people mourn their own, the power governs silence”, the communicator wrote on Facebook.
"Because in Cuba, even tragedies are filtered through political convenience... and even death, when it is inconvenient, becomes a state secret," he added.
According to Mayeta, the official was reportedly transferred urgently to the Saturnino Lora Provincial Hospital, the main medical center in the province, where he underwent surgery.
His exact health status is unknown, and the authorities have not yet issued an official statement confirming or denying that the first secretary of the PCC in Contramaestre was indeed injured in the incident.
"What has indeed caused a great uproar in the hospital halls is the immediate presence of high-ranking officials from the Communist Party in Santiago de Cuba, who mobilized to the center as soon as news of the accident broke. The tension among the medical staff, security personnel, and visitors has become evident, amid the secrecy and lack of details regarding the rest of the injured," concluded the unofficial source from Washington.
As of the closing of this report, there are no further details about what happened.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
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