A property located on Milanés Street, between Manzaneda and Zaragoza, in the historic center of Matanzas, collapsed suddenly this afternoon without injuries reported, according to content creator Christian Arbolaez.
The images from the incident show debris scattered across the sidewalk and roadway, as well as emergency personnel wearing white and yellow helmets assessing the area amidst colonial buildings displaying the typical colors of Matanzas heritage.
As of the time of the report, the causes of the collapse had not been disclosed.
The event occurs in one of the main arteries of the historic center of the city, an area declared a National Monument, where technical studies estimate that approximately 100 buildings exhibit a high degree of deterioration and that 12% of the structures are in poor condition with a risk of irreversible destruction.
The causes of deterioration are systemic: deficiencies in waterproofing and drainage, lack of planned maintenance, abusive changes in usage, scarcity of building materials, and absence of stable funding for conservation.
In July 2025, the local government had already restricted access to several buildings in the historic center due to the risk of collapse, without any noticeable improvement in the situation.
The very Milanés street runs parallel to Calle del Medio, whose decline was widely documented in May 2026 with illegal motorcycle traffic, accumulation of trash, and thefts, despite being a pedestrian street also declared a National Monument.
This collapse adds to a series of incidents recorded in the province during 2026: on May 30, the old cafeteria El Confite in Colón partially gave way, and on May 11, a warehouse collapsed in Cárdenas, both without any injuries.
The pattern repeats on a national scale. In Havana, nearly 1,000 buildings collapse each year, and by the end of 2025, there were 185,348 properties in poor condition in the capital, of which more than 46,000 required substantial repairs. In 2025, at least six people died in the capital due to collapses, including a seven-year-old girl and a five-month-old baby.
The Cuban regime has been repeatedly criticized for prioritizing the construction of tourist hotels over the maintenance of housing heritage and historical centers, a policy that has consistently exacerbated the structural crisis throughout the country.
The newspaper Girón, the official organ of the province, warned in 2026 that "what is at stake is no longer just the image of Matanzas, but the health and future of those who inhabit it."
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