An electric pole and the electrical system of a house burned simultaneously in Havana as a direct consequence of the power fluctuations, according to a video posted on Facebook by user Yoel Cruz last Monday.
In the footage, recorded at night, the burning pole is seen in front of a house whose electrical installation also began to catch fire. According to the author, the pole had been burning for at least 15 minutes when he went out to record, alerted by the neighbors' shouts.
What exacerbates the situation is the complete absence of institutional response. Neighbors called the fire department, but they replied that the emergency was the responsibility of the electric company. The company did not respond either. One neighbor tried to intervene with a home fire extinguisher, but Cruz warned him that it was a high-voltage electrical fire.
"I want someone to explain to me if the electric company has resources to put out a fire, because as far as I know, it's the firefighters who extinguish fires, but the firefighters say it's the electric company," Cruz claimed before the camera.
The author of the video directly addressed the Cuban regime with a question that captures the desperation of thousands of families: "Who pays for that? Huh, Cuban? Who is paying for that family now?"
Cruz also pointed out the paradox that Cubans face: "There are no resources for this. Now, shout something political and suddenly I have ten cars and four trucks loaded up."
The incident is a direct consequence of the voltage surges caused by prolonged blackouts in Cuba. When the supply is suddenly restored without control, household electrical systems and poles —many of which have decades of use without maintenance— cannot withstand the voltage spikes.
"This is the madness that the quitipón brings, and when the current comes, it comes with the voltage as it pleases, out of control. Total madness," Cruz described.
The energy context in which this fire occurs is devastating. On May 12, the Electric Union reported a generation capacity of only 1,290 MW against a demand of 3,250 MW, resulting in a deficit of 1,960 MW that left 61% of Cuba without electricity during peak hours. In Havana, power outages reached 18 consecutive hours on May 11, while in other provinces they exceeded 20 hours.
This is not the first incident of this kind. On May 9, an electric motorcycle Grillo caught fire in Havana while it was charging after a blackout, destroying half of the motorcycle and the charger. In March, a transformer exploded next to a house, although in that instance there was no fire or injuries.
Although there is a formal procedure for filing property damage claims with the Electric Company, in practice, those affected rarely receive compensation.
Cruz closed his video with a warning and a condemnation: “Look how lovely the consequences of voltage spikes from prolonged blackouts are. When the pole burns and the wires fall.” And addressing the founder of the dictatorship, he stated: “Thank you for everything, Fidel. This is your legacy.”
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