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A traffic accident that occurred this Monday on the Vereda–San Antonio de los Baños road in the province of Artemisa resulted in at least one fatality, five serious injuries, and dozens of other injured individuals, according to the newspaper El Artemiseño.
The vehicle involved was transporting young individuals returning to their military unit after enjoying their time off, which makes the incident a new tragedy affecting recruits of the Mandatory Military Service in Cuba.
The captain Reinaldo Cicilia Salazar, head of the Traffic Unit Detachment in Artemisa, stated that "preliminary data and testimonies suggest a loss of control of the vehicle," although experts continue to investigate the exact causes of the crash.
The injured were immediately transferred to the Iván Portuondo General Teaching Hospital in San Antonio de los Baños.
Given the severity of several cases, the authorities coordinated the transfer of some patients to the Calixto García and Juan Manuel Márquez hospitals, both reference centers in Havana.
The surgeons Pedro Luis Rivera Pérez and Osniel Enrique Pulido specified the extent of the injuries: four adults were injured, including the driver of the vehicle; five young people are reported in serious condition; and nearly twenty are under observation with no risk to their lives.
At the end of the report, the local media confirmed the death of an adult.
This accident adds to a series of serious traffic incidents that have shaken Artemisa in recent months.
In July 2025, a bus overturned on the road to Las Terrazas left more than 20 people injured.
Likewise, in September of the same year, a 16-year-old teenager lost his life in a collision between a car and a motorcycle in Las Mangas.
The national outlook is also discouraging. According to data from the National Road Safety Commission, Cuba recorded 750 fatalities and 6,718 injuries in 7,538 accidents during 2025, representing an 18% increase in deaths compared to the first quarter of 2024.
The human factor was identified as responsible for 92% of accidents and 98% of fatalities.
The death of young individuals linked to military service has also sparked growing public concern. In May 2025, two recruits from the Mandatory Military Service were killed in a traffic accident in Mariel, also in the province of Artemisa.
Moreover, in March 2026, a 19-year-old young man died during military service in Havana under circumstances that also caused distress.
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