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Carlos Rafael López Ibarra, a 33-year-old turbine operator, passed away after several days of fighting for his life, following a serious workplace accident at the Antonio Maceo Grajales “Renté” Thermoelectric Power Plant in Santiago de Cuba.
The accident occurred last Sunday, August 31, around 9:30 p.m., during the start-up and synchronization of generation unit No. 5. According to Unión Eléctrica (UNE), a steam pipe experienced a failure, releasing high-temperature steam that caused burns on 89% of the young worker's body.
López Ibarra was immediately attended to by the medical staff on site and transferred to the Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas General Hospital, where he remained hospitalized in extremely critical condition, according to confirmations from medical and provincial authorities.
According to the , during the days of hospitalization, the young man showed strength and actively participated in the treatment, despite the severity of his injuries.
On September 8, after several days of battling, his death was confirmed. Authorities from the Communist Party in Santiago de Cuba, such as Beatriz Johnson Urrutia, expressed their sorrow on their for the loss of the worker, emphasizing his dedication, commitment, and responsibility to his work.
The incident has caused shock among colleagues and in the Santiago community. The independent communicator Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, who has followed the case, reported on that “it's not just a power outage that we are experiencing; it's the lives of workers that are dimming every day amidst negligence and carelessness.”
The plant management reported that security protocols have been activated and the exact cause of the failure in the steam infrastructure is under investigation. The incident occurs against a backdrop of frequent collapses in the National Electric System, characterized by lack of maintenance, improvisation, and chronic technical deterioration in the country's thermoelectric plants.
According to official data from the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), 934 workplace accidents were reported in Cuba in 2024, resulting in 52 deaths, which means one person died every week at their workplace.
The tragic death of Carlos Rafael López Ibarra not only gives a face to a statistic but also once again highlights the human consequences of the ongoing collapse of the Cuban electrical system.
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