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Thalía Milagros Mariño Recouso, who recently graduated as a Doctor of Medicine, lost her life on Thursday, May 1, after a traffic accident on Escario Street, Santa Bárbara neighborhood, Santiago de Cuba, at an intersection that locals deem one of the most dangerous in the city.
According to independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, Thalía was riding a motorcycle with her partner, who is also a doctor, when they allegedly ran a stop sign and were violently struck by a car.
Witnesses claim that the young woman arrived alive at the hospital, but she died one or two hours later due to the severity of her injuries.
His partner survived the impact and remains hospitalized. So far, no official details about his health status are known, and Cuban authorities have not made any statements.
The images of the scene show a downed motorcycle with severe damage, a full-face helmet lying on the wet pavement, and a silver sedan with a dented front hood.
Thalía had recently graduated from the University of Medical Sciences of Santiago de Cuba, an institution that in the 2024-2025 class awarded degrees to 1,164 new health professionals, including 298 doctors.
The intersection where the accident occurred has a documented history of incidents. A state moving truck collided with a motorcycle with a sidecar on that same street on May 3, 2025, leaving the motorcyclist injured.
Residents have been reporting the danger of that corner for years. According to Mayeta Labrada, "the signage is inadequate, the stop sign is often stolen or ignored, and a serious intervention is needed before another family is forced to mourn."
"It is not an isolated accident. It is a warning that repeats itself. And no one listens, until it is too late," he concluded.
The death of Thalía is not an isolated case. Traffic accidents resulted in 750 deaths in Cuba during 2025, according to the National Road Safety Commission, with a total of 7,538 incidents and 6,718 injuries.
Motorcycles, mopeds, and pedestrians were involved in 63% of the recorded accidents that year, and 75% of the country's roads and highways are in regular or poor technical condition.
It is not the first time a young Cuban doctor has lost their life under similar circumstances. Dr. Ricardo Cabrera Enoa passed away in a traffic accident in Granma in April 2024, and Dr. Iliet Ramírez Sardiñas died along with her eight-year-old son and two other people in February of this year.
These cases reflect the vulnerability of healthcare professionals who, due to the transportation crisis in Cuba, are forced to travel on motorcycles along poorly maintained roads with insufficient signage.
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