A video posted on Facebook by ARC Noticias shows a young motorcyclist performing a dangerous nighttime stunt in Guanajay, Artemisa province, while carrying a young woman sitting backward on the motorcycle — back to back with the driver — without a helmet or any type of protective gear.
The clip, circulated with the slogan "Guanajay Activo," captures the moment when the rider lifts the front wheel of the motorcycle—a maneuver commonly referred to as a "caballito"—while the passenger, clinging to him to avoid falling, is left completely exposed to a potentially deadly fall.
The recording, taken at night on a road with vegetation on either side, shows a low-capacity motorcycle with red LED lights at the bottom.
ARC Noticias shared the video critically, without hiding the outrage: "They post this video on social media, with great pride. I'll leave it here for you as homework. Then, families crying, mothers crying."
The scene is not an isolated incident. In July 2025, a young man was arrested in Havana after going viral for performing similar stunts on Boyeros Avenue, without a license or registration, and with the motorcycle modified to facilitate the acrobatics. The authorities imposed detention, a warning, and the obligation to remove the modifications from the vehicle.
The Cuban Road Safety Code —Law 109— mandates the use of a properly fastened helmet for both drivers and passengers of motorcycles and mopeds, and penalizes reckless maneuvers on public roads. However, compliance is inconsistent, and the culture of sharing these "feats" on social media continues.
The statistical context makes the video’s image even more alarming. According to official figures released in February 2026, Cuba recorded 7,538 traffic accidents in 2025, resulting in 750 deaths and 6,718 injuries.
Motorcycles and mopeds were involved in 63% of the accidents, and authorities attribute 91% of the accidents to human factors: speeding, recklessness, and lack of helmets.
The province of Artemisa, where Guanajay is located, has been the scene of several fatal accidents in recent months. A 16-year-old teenager died in September 2025 following a collision between a car and a motorcycle in Las Mangas. Weeks later, a young woman from the same province passed away after 21 days in a coma due to a motorcycle accident.
The rise of motorcycles as a mode of transportation due to fuel shortages and the decline of public transport has led to a surge in accidents in Cuba, where the viral spread of reckless stunts on social media fosters a culture of impunity that ultimately ends in tragedy sooner or later.
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