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A fire completely destroyed the home of two families on Gallo Street 110, between San Antonio and San Ricardo, in Santiago de Cuba, leaving five children homeless and their relatives scattered across other people's houses.
The news was shared by Vivian Lumila Castilla Cobas, the aunt of one of the affected minors, through a post on Facebook, which became an urgent call for solidarity. "I only found the strength to write today," she confessed, revealing the emotional burden of the tragedy.
The five affected children are Laura Ximena Palacios Martínez, eight years old; Reinaldo Valiente Sánchez, 14; Alex Sandiego Polan Sánchez, seven; Alex Sandro Polan Sánchez, six; and Alex Hendris Polan Sánchez, just three months old.
The adults directly affected are Jailyn Sánchez Beltrán, the grandmother, and Yanisleydis Sánchez Beltrán, the mother of several of the minors. Castilla Cobas noted in parentheses, with evident pride and pain, that "the affected individuals are teachers."
After the fire, the families were "relocated to the homes of their relatives, scattered," according to the author of the post. Little Laura Ximena, aged eight, was taken to her father's house.
The situation worsens because these families were already struggling. "Affected by climatic events and now a fire," wrote Castilla Cobas, referring to the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa, which struck eastern Cuba in late October 2025 and damaged more than 106,500 homes just in Santiago de Cuba. Five months after that disaster, only 17% of those homes had been repaired, according to data from the Provincial Government's Program Coordinator.
During the fire, the situation was even more desperate because there was no way to communicate with the firefighters. Castilla Cobas explicitly mentioned this in his post, highlighting a failure that has been repeated in other recent incidents in the city.
The publication has sparked a wave of reactions characterized by pain and empathy. Dozens of people have expressed their dismay at the tragedy, but they have also posed direct questions: who will help these families? What response will the authorities provide?
Some comments point to a deeper reality. Neighbors claim that there were already housing issues in that area and that there had even been discussions about evictions or relocations that never materialized. The tragedy, they say, reveals a vulnerability that had been building up over time.
Solidarity has also emerged. Several individuals have offered to donate clothing, basic necessities, and any possible assistance for the affected children, in a gesture that reflects how, in the absence of quick solutions, it is the Cubans themselves who are trying to support one another.
Castilla Cobas expressed gratitude to those who responded with what they had: "Thank you, thank you, a thousand thanks to neighbors, thank you friends, thank you my people for your solidarity, to those who offered a glass of water, a warm coffee, your unconditional love." He also recognized the presence of the delegate, the Municipal Education director, and the crews that cleared the debris.
However, the most urgent call was directed at the regime: "S.O.S to the PCC and the Government, let’s hope they soon have a place to relocate them, and even if it means them, their family and friends replacing basic items."
"Thank you, God, they are alive and physically healthy; the pain is lingering, especially with the current prices. Let no one forget it, they are my blood, and it hurts a lot," concluded Castilla Cobas in a message that encapsulates the anguish of losing everything in a country where starting over from scratch is, for most, an almost impossible task.
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