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What seemed to be the return of electricity after another blackout ended in explosions, smoke, and charred appliances for several families in Santa Clara.
A malfunction that occurred this Tuesday on Cuarta Street, between A and Prolongación de Colón, part of circuit 6 in the city, caused severe damage to 14 homes, left one person with minor burns, and destroyed electrical equipment in nearly the entire block, according to reports from local media from the province of Villa Clara.
Neighbors reported that the explosions began suddenly after the restoration of the electrical service.
"Our refrigerators, televisions, freezers, and almost all the appliances that we didn't have time to unplug were burned," said Yudy Peralta Ramos, one of the affected individuals.
The woman recalled that within the house, electrical outlets began to explode and the power meter ended up bursting amid a thick cloud of smoke.
According to Juan Antonio González González, director of the Santa Clara Electric Company, the incident occurred when a primary cable broke due to the overload caused after several hours without service.
"As a result of the overload that occurs after long hours of power outage, a primary cable broke and fell onto the wiring that goes directly to the houses. This caused high voltage, which led to several fires and explosions throughout the block," he clarified.
The accident revealed one of the risks associated with the energy crisis the country is experiencing. Prolonged service interruptions and subsequent reconnections can lead to significant voltage fluctuations capable of damaging home installations and electrical equipment.
The crews from the Electric Company immediately began recovery efforts. The work includes the replacement of interior installations that were severely affected by the overvoltage.
Some homes suffered such severe damage that parts of their electrical systems had to be completely replaced.
Diamela López Valdés, the first secretary of the Party in Santa Clara, reported that the injured person is out of danger.
Yudy Peralta stated that government officials promised to replace the equipment and goods damaged during the incident.
"They assured us that they will give us back everything we lost, and we have faith that this will be the case," he said.
During the day, the first secretary of the Communist Party in Villa Clara, Susely Morfa González, and the provincial governor Milaxy Yanet Sánchez Armas toured the affected homes and directed the urgent assessment of the damages to facilitate the replacement of lost equipment.
Meanwhile, specialists from the Integral Automation Company (CEDAI) continued working inside the homes to restore the electrical installations and return normalcy to a block that went, in a matter of seconds, from blackout to explosions.
Similar incidents have been reported recently in other provinces, one of which occurred yesterday in a house that caught fire in Santiago de Cuba, and in May a house burned due to an electric pole during a reconnection in Havana.
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