Lorena Isabel Hernández Bassa, 34 years old and originally from the province of Guantánamo, passed away as a result of the massive bus accident that occurred this past Sunday on the National Highway of Cuba, becoming the first fatality of the incident that left 48 injured in Cienfuegos.
The death was confirmed by Dr. Ling Denise Santeiro, director of the Dr. Gustavo Aldereguía Lima University General Hospital, who informed journalist Mayelin del Sol about the death of the young woman, who was traveling on the Yutong bus covering the Havana-Guantánamo route when the vehicle had the accident in the section known as Puente de las Cajas, between kilometers 172 and 176, in the municipality of Aguada de Pasajeros.
The news contrasts with the initial report from Sunday, when the hospital's director herself stated that "fortunately, there are no fatalities to mourn."
After the passing of Hernández Bassa, health authorities updated the status of the other admitted patients: three patients remain reported as serious and one in critical condition, all stable.
Dr. Ian González Ramos reported that the injured minors are showing favorable progress.
The two cases of children evaluated in Villa Clara show no complications and continue to receive care at the Paquito González Cueto Children's Hospital in Cienfuegos.
A minor remains in intensive care due to a subarachnoid hemorrhage, although her clinical condition is stable, according to the doctor.
The accident occurred in the early hours of Sunday, around 2:40 a.m., on one of the most dangerous stretches of Cuban roads.
That same corridor was the scene, on November 7, 2025, of another accident involving a Yutong bus at kilometer 183, resulting in two fatalities and 18 injuries.
Weeks later, on December 22, 2025, a new accident at kilometer 188 claimed the lives of the two drivers of another bus and left at least 13 injured, including two minors.
In January 2025, a similar tragedy near Aguada de Pasajeros also left fatalities and numerous injuries at kilometer 209 of the same highway.
All the incidents occurred during nighttime or early morning and involved interprovincial transport buses on routes between Havana and the eastern part of the country.
This pattern is set against a backdrop of a national road safety crisis: in 2025, Cuba recorded 750 fatalities in traffic accidents, compared to 634 in 2024, according to data from the National Road Safety Commission presented in February of this year.
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