Fire at Manuel Fajardo hospital was reportedly caused by the overheating of a lamp

This Sunday, recovery efforts began at the Comandante Manuel Fajardo Clinical Surgical Teaching Hospital in Havana following the fire that broke out Saturday night in a fifth-floor facility of the institution.

According to the Municipal Administration Council of Plaza de la Revolución reported through its Facebook profile, the preliminary assessment by specialists determined that the incident was caused by overheating of a lamp's transformer, which led to the fire in the affected area.

The official version stated that the flames originated in an unused facility, "without putting the lives of patients or center staff at risk," although as a precautionary measure, several people were evacuated.

The firefighters in the capital contained the blaze, and the main authorities of the municipality went to the site to supervise the situation.

Authorities stated that the hospital continues to provide all of its services.

The fire at Manuel Fajardo is not an isolated incident, but part of a documented pattern of incidents in Cuban hospitals related to the deterioration of the electrical infrastructure on the island.

In April, the Saturnino Lora Hospital in Santiago de Cuba suffered a fire caused by a voltage surge in the compressor of an air conditioner, which forced the evacuation of 12 patients, four of whom were transferred to other facilities.

In September 2025, the Amalia Simoni Hospital in Camagüey reported a fire due to an electrical overload in the generator's transformer, which necessitated the evacuation of three critical patients.

In October 2025, a fire at the 10 de Octubre Hospital in Havana was controlled in less than 15 minutes by the staff of the facility.

In February 2025, the Provincial Hospital Camilo Cienfuegos in Sancti Spíritus experienced a fire in the intermediate therapy room, the third of its kind recorded at this institution.

This pattern reflects the deterioration of hospital electrical facilities, exacerbated by the energy crisis that causes prolonged blackouts and overloads of electrical systems in healthcare centers throughout Cuba.