A din of pots so intense that it barely allows the voices of the protesters to be heard shook Old Havana this Monday during a blackout, according to a video shared on Facebook by the independent communicator Yosmany Mayeta Labrada.
The recording, almost entirely dark due to the power cut, starkly reflects the accumulated frustration of the residents of Havana in the face of a seemingly inescapable energy crisis.
The clip was published this Monday with the text "Strong pot-banging during the blackout in Old Havana" and shows only a faint source of light in the complete darkness of the historic neighborhood of the Cuban capital.
The day arrived with a projected electricity deficit of 2,130 MW for the peak nighttime hours, according to the report from the Electric Union.
The availability of the National Electroenergetic System was only 1,150 MW compared to a projected demand of 3,250 MW.
On Sunday, the system had recorded a maximum impact of 2,083 MW, and the service was interrupted for 24 hours a day, according to data from the Electric Union itself.
The date also carries a particular symbolic weight: the pot-banging protest this Monday takes place the day after the 73rd anniversary of the attack on the Moncada Barracks, an anniversary that the Cuban regime commemorates as National Rebellion Day.
The government had declared a work break on July 25, 26, and 27, but the official holiday coincides with 24-hour blackouts and a wave of protests that it could not silence.
What happened this Monday in Old Havana is not an isolated incident.
The most recent protest episodes before this Monday included cacerolazos in El Vedado just ten days ago after more than 30 hours without supply, new cacerolazos and fire barricades in Havana and Santiago de Cuba five days ago, and protests in Lawton, San Agustín, La Coronela, and La Lisa last Saturday.
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