A fire completely affected the structure of three homes in the vicinity of Las Américas Park in San Germán (Urbano Noris), Holguín province, with no reported loss of human life, according to the local broadcaster Radio SG La Voz del Azúcar.
According to that source, the incident occurred on the night of February 16 and was extinguished by personnel from Command #6 of the Holguín Fire Department, with organized support from local residents. The causes of the fire "have not yet been officially determined."
Walter Marrero Ballester, the first secretary of the Municipal Committee of the Party in Urbano Noris, declared to the broadcaster that "there are no reported loss of human lives and a significant amount of material goods was rescued." It was also reported that Joel Queipo Ruiz, the first secretary of the Provincial Committee of the Party in Holguín, and Manuel Francisco Hernández Aguilera, the governor of the province, visited the site and interacted with those affected while specialized forces were at work. The information was later reported by Cubadebate and by the official profile Minint Hoy.
Images and videos shared on social media show houses engulfed in flames during the night. In a post accompanied by recordings of the fire, the user Ricardo Amador Rodríguez wrote: “San German is on fire. The wooden houses at the corner of the main park in our modest town crackle and roar under the relentless fury of a fire that advances without pause. The flames, voracious and merciless, starkly reveal the fragility of an infrastructure that was never truly prepared to face an emergency of this magnitude.”
In the comments on the local radio station's post and in other related publications, numerous users reported delays in the arrival of the firefighters and stated that by the time they arrived, the fire had already consumed the homes.
"The firefighters arrived when there was nothing left," wrote one person. Another remarked, "The firefighters arrived late; there were barely any flames left." It is also noted: "No fire department extinguished the fire; the three houses sadly turned to ashes."
A person who claimed to have been at the scene commented, “I was there; it is disrespectful that you as journalists don’t report what really happened. Everything burned due to a lack of water, due to the absence of a fire truck in the municipality; the first truck arrived at 9:32 PM.” Another user noted, “The fire started around 8:47.”
In the same thread, other messages were posted conveying the same sentiment: "The firefighters arrived so late that there were no houses left"; "How was a fire put out by firefighters from Holguín? Do you know what you are saying? How long did it take for the firefighters to arrive? I'm at a loss for words"; "The firefighters arrived after there was nothing left."
There were also comments highlighting the lack of water in the municipality. "Everything burned there due to lack of water," wrote one person. Another stated, "There is no water there."
Some users pointed out structural problems that, according to them, hinder emergency response. "When the power goes out, San Germán becomes completely isolated; even the home phones don't work," wrote one person. Another commented, "It is impossible to live without water, without electricity, without an emergency station for this type of event."
Walter Marrero Ballester himself intervened in the thread, stating: “I want to emphasize the positive response from the people, the municipal and provincial authorities, and the gratitude from families for the support. Local media and firefighters extinguished the fire, and families are already being moved to a safe place.” However, his comment received a critical response: “Have you read the comments on this post? What positive response?”
In the related post published by CiberCuba Noticias about the disaster, messages were also left in a similar vein. "The firefighters arrived when the houses were already burned down, ...and there wasn't even any water," wrote one person. Another commented: "Do they control? After nothing was left." It also reads: "They didn't control, it controlled itself..."
In addition to the reports, many users expressed solidarity with the affected families: “Strength to the families”, “My condolences to those families, stay strong”, “The situation is very sad, oh my god”, and “My support to the affected families.”
In another Facebook post, the user Dennis Domínguez provided more details about the incident. “11:40 PM, February 16, 2026, three and a half hours ago, a fire in front of the San Germán park caused three houses to burn down; so far, there have been no reported casualties,” he stated.
In that same message, he stated that “the house where the fire started belonged to a person with a disability who was cooking in the yard. Since the cyclone, they had been having problems with their home; they had already made a post because they were exposed to the elements, as the roof was missing from the house.”
He also stated that "the firefighters arrived late" and that "thanks to the cooperation of the people, they were able to save their lives and material belongings." "Once again, thank you to the people who showed solidarity so that there were no greater losses," he added in the message, which was accompanied by several photos.
So far, the authorities have not provided any additional information about the causes of the fire or specific details about the support measures for those affected, besides reiterating that there were no loss of human lives and that the incident was extinguished.
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