Related videos:
The authorities in Matanzas reported this Saturday on the distribution of flour for making pizza dough and the increase in the production of cooked food as part of the alternatives implemented in the province to address the challenging situation caused by the collapse of the national power system and the prolonged blackouts, which in most circuits have lasted up to 70 hours.
According to a publication from the Provincial Government of the People's Power in Matanzas, flour intended for the preparation of pizza dough has already been distributed in the 13 municipalities of the territory.
Additionally, it was announced that Cárdenas and the city of Matanzas will receive basic basket bread over the weekend, produced thanks to the operation of bakeries with generators.
The official report also highlights the "significant" increase in the cooking of food rations in trade and gastronomy units, as well as in cooperatives and state-owned enterprises.
Among the prepared foods are rice, stews, side dishes, and croquettes, in an effort to provide options to the population amid severe energy limitations.
In addition to pizza molds and cooked food, the authorities stated that they are continuing the distribution of peas and sugar, and are seeking strategies to deliver basic basket milk directly to children in remote communities of Unión de Reyes and La Ciénaga de Zapata, areas that had been affected for several days. The report indicated that the problem should be resolved in the following hours.
These measures are part of a broader strategy to sustain essential services and ensure a minimum supply for the population in a context that the authorities themselves describe as "complex," due to the significant generation deficit and the failure to integrate essential plants into the system.
According to the note, it is expected that with the commissioning of the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Power Plant and other units, the service in the circuits that have been off for the longest time can gradually be restored.
In this context, the group from the CTE Antonio Guiteras, along with specialized companies, was about to complete the repair of a malfunction in one of the boiler's pipes.
Engineer Rubén Campos Olmos, the plant director, explained that the final preparations were being made to start the operation in the afternoon, and if conditions allowed, to synchronize the unit between night and early morning.
The energy crisis paralyzes all services
The energy crisis has had direct effects on other basic services. The director of the Water Supply and Sewerage Company, Guillermo Cue Lugo, reported that the main water supply systems in the cities of Matanzas and Cárdenas began to pump water after their circuits were energized.
However, there are still impacts in areas such as Los Mangos, Matanzas Oeste, San Antonio de Cabezas, Jovellanos, Pedro Betancourt, and other municipalities that still do not have power to start the pumps.
In the midst of this situation, health authorities also urged people to boil and chlorinate water following reports of isolated cases of hepatitis.
The official statement adds that between noon and 6 PM, the circuits of the Military Hospital, Jovellanos, Jagüey Grande, and Colón were shut down to transfer that energy to circuits that had been without service for a longer time.
According to the Electric Company of Matanzas, those institutions continued to operate using diesel-powered generators.
The Provincial Government also reported on other specific actions, such as the repair of transformers in the communities of Coliseo and Quintana; the installation of solar panels for the turbine of the buildings in Torriente; water pumping in Agramonte and Jagüey Grande; and the supply of diesel to the generator of the radio base in Girón to improve communication coverage in part of the Ciénaga de Zapata.
Filed under: