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Isvant Yasser Araujo González, 21 years old, lost his life this Thursday, June 4, when the roof of an abandoned train station collapsed on him in the Jersey neighborhood, municipality of Santa Cruz del Norte, Mayabeque province.
Next to the young man was a 16-year-old girl, Daimarelis Sánchez Rodríguez, who was injured.
According to the news shared in the "Compra-Venta Santa Cruz del Norte" group, and confirmed by family and friends, both young individuals were inside the structure when the roof suddenly collapsed while they were on the phone.
The authorities acted after the accident: forensics collected evidence at the scene, and the teenager received medical attention first at Alberto Fernández Hospital and then was transferred to Leopoldito Martínez Hospital in San José.
The news shocked the community and generated a wave of condolences on social media. A user who identified himself as a neighbor of the young man wrote: "Rest in peace, Yase, as I used to say. An incredibly exemplary young man, no doubt. My condolences to his family."
"Rest in peace, my brother. I would have been at your funeral, but I was in Havana, just a neighbor down the block," he added.
Another comment expressed outrage at the infrastructure crisis facing the island: "This has gotten out of control; a thousand young people die daily from accidents like this, landslides. For God's sake, support the youth."
The reactions did not stop there. "What a tragic event. I was deeply moved this morning when I learned of it. My deepest condolences to family and friends," wrote another person.
The accident occurs within the context of a structural crisis of housing and infrastructure in Cuba that has steadily worsened.
The collapse of poorly maintained buildings has claimed multiple lives in recent months.
In July 2025, three people died in a collapse in Old Havana, including a seven-year-old girl. In February of this year, a 29-year-old woman was found dead in a building in a state of collapse in Old Havana.
Santa Cruz del Norte has numerous abandoned facilities related to the old Hershey sugar complex, many of which are in a state of advanced deterioration following the closure of the mill in the 2000s.
The stop where the tragedy occurred is part of that forgotten industrial heritage that the Cuban regime has allowed to deteriorate for decades.
"Oh God, what pain, a young man full of life; there are no words to console those parents, siblings, friends," summarized an internet user the sentiment of those bidding farewell to Isvant Yasser Araujo González, a 21-year-old whose life was cut short by the neglect of infrastructure that should never have been left accessible.
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