Residents of Salud Street, between Santiago and Márquez González, in Centro Habana, protested this Tuesday with a pot-banging demonstration after being without electricity, gas, and water for over 28 hours, according to videos sent to CubaNet from the scene.
The accumulation of three basic shortages sparked outrage among residents, who banged pots in the street to demand a response to the service crisis affecting the neighborhood.
The protest coincided with a new failure in the manufactured gas system of Havana. This Tuesday, the Manufactured Gas Company reported that a technical failure of "higher force" left between 208,000 and 284,000 customers in eight municipalities of the capital without service, including Centro Habana, Habana Vieja, Cerro, Diez de Octubre, Plaza de la Revolución, Playa, and Marianao. The company did not specify when service might be restored.
The gas interruption adds to an energy crisis that in June has led to blackouts lasting up to 20 and 22 hours a day in Havana. On June 25, the national generation deficit reached a record 2,208 MW, leaving nearly 70% of the country without electricity simultaneously.
Additionally, the deterioration of potable water supply is a concern. According to official figures, over 376,000 residents of Havana are experiencing issues with the service, a situation that neighbors on Salud Street reported alongside prolonged power outages and a lack of gas.
The protest on Tuesday added to a series of demonstrations recorded in Centro Habana over the past few weeks. On June 3, there were protests in the San Lázaro area; on the 8th, in Infanta and San Lázaro; on the 17th, in Manrique and Reina; and between June 19 and 20, residents of Escobar and San Miguel set up barricades and set piles of trash on fire in the middle of the street.
The Cuban Observatory of Conflicts (OCC) recorded 1,311 protests during May 2026, the highest number since the demonstrations of July 11, 2021, and described that month as "the longest wave" of citizen discontent recorded in recent years.
According to independent organizations, the authorities' response has included police deployments, arrests, and internet access restrictions in areas where protests have occurred. The Cuban Observatory of Human Rights documented at least 38 arrests during the June protests, including six minors.
The crisis in basic services is a result of the accumulated deterioration of the country's infrastructure. Years of inadequate investment, the aging of the electric power system—including the repeated breakdowns of the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant—and the reduction in oil supply have worsened a situation that forces thousands of Cuban families to survive amid blackouts, water shortages, and a lack of fuel for cooking. Meanwhile, those who turn to the informal market must pay between 24 and 50 dollars for a cylinder of liquefied gas, an expense that far exceeds the purchasing power of most state salaries.
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