After Cuba experienced its eighth total disconnection of the National Electric System this year on Friday, the citizen reaction on social media has been one of complete frustration: "How much longer?"
According to Félix Estrada Rodríguez, director of the National Cargo Office of the Electric Union, who explained live on the pro-government Channel Caribe, the collapse originated in the central part of the country.
"A failure occurred in the high-voltage transmission network of the central region of the country, causing the system to collapse entirely." The trigger was the successive tripping of two 220 kV transmission lines—first the Matanzas-Cienfuegos, and then the Matanzas-Santa Clara—which split the system into eastern and western zones before both completely fell apart.
The official explained on television that the restoration protocol began in the Jaruco units and progressed towards the thermoelectric plants in Santa Cruz and Mariel, prioritizing hospitals and water pumping stations.
However, he admitted that the recovery would be slower than usual due to the absence of key technologies: distributed generation, MOA engines, Mariel barges, and diesel and fuel oil. "Right now, we do not have this technology available," he acknowledged.
The video report from Canal Caribe from the National Cargo Office garnered nearly 193,000 views and over 5,800 reactions on Facebook, with hundreds of comments reflecting a population on the brink of its patience.
"We are almost used to these disconnections... they are systematic," wrote an internet user. Another was more direct: "The SEN is always down, it falls more than it stands."
A user flatly rejected the official narrative: "Here it's like a crab, going backward; don't keep justifying it with the damn blockade."
Several questioned the technical version: "I don’t know anything about electrical engineering, but one thing is for sure: that thing about the SEN is the biggest nonsense of modern times, and the WORST part is that they insist on centralizing energy sources."
Another person asked sarcastically, "I don’t understand, if we've been without electricity for about seven months, what causes the SEN to fail, or are they pushing it?"
Distrust in official information is common. "If I were a representative of Cuba's electricity system, I wouldn't show my face on TV; I would hide it before talking to the people," stated an internet user.
Another stated that "it's all just chatter and more chatter," and that someone should take the specialist and the leader Díaz-Canel "and connect them to the system to see if they can get a little bit of energy in their heads or if this just completely falls apart."
"This is the story of the good pipe, more of the same with the same, and then the same again," lamented a third party.
In recent hours, the Electric Union has updated information regarding the situation of the National Electric System, and the news leaves little room for optimism.
This Saturday morning, the capital reached a 44.2% recovery rate, with 126 distribution circuits out of a total of 286. There are 25 substations operational out of 26; six pumping systems operational out of 18, and 45 hospitals with electricity. There is no confirmed timeline for complete restoration.
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