An 18-year-old young man lost his life last Wednesday, September 24, after receiving an electric shock while pruning trees near a high-voltage power line in the municipality of Cabaiguán, Sancti Spíritus.
According to information confirmed by the Electric Company of Sancti Spíritus to independent journalist Magdiel Jorge Castro, the accident occurred around 9:00 am when the victim was cutting a branch located near the 110 kV line of the Tuinucú 220 kV–Cabaiguán 110 kV transmission, resulting in an electrical contact that caused his death.
The young man's name was Keyler Ramos Guerrera. He was not an employee of the Electric Company, but rather a member of a pruning brigade contracted by third parties and affiliated with the CCS Ramón Balboa, an agricultural Credit and Services Cooperative located in Guayos, within the municipality of Cabaiguán.
The case documentation classifies it as a "fatal accident involving a third party contracted for pruning work," highlighting that the risk of fatal electrical accidents extends beyond specialized personnel in the sector, reaching external workers who operate alongside high-voltage infrastructure.
So far, no details have been publicly disclosed regarding the security protocols implemented during the operation or any potential liabilities.
Keyler's tragedy is the third death linked to the Cuban electrical system so far in September.
At the beginning of the month, lineman Edisvey Rolando Pérez Rodríguez, 32 years old, from the Electric Company of Sancti Spíritus, was electrocuted in the El Roble neighborhood of Guanabacoa, Havana, while repairing a transformer; witnesses indicated that a possible cause was an illegal connection that sent current back into the cable he was working on.
On September 12, Mario Vives Mesa, a specialized lineman from Palmira, Cienfuegos, died in Juraguá during the construction of the new output line from the Solar Park; in the same incident, his colleague Ridier Molina León was hospitalized in intensive care.
These deaths occur within the context of an unprecedented energy crisis: the Cuban electrical system is operating in September with deficits exceeding 2,000 megawatts and blackouts that have simultaneously affected up to 70% of the country.
Cabaiguán, the municipality where Keyler died, has been identified by the Electric Company of Sancti Spíritus as the most affected by the crisis in the province, with power outages of up to 50 continuous hours recorded in 2026.
The working conditions in the sector are extremely precarious: deteriorated protective equipment, poorly maintained vehicles, and exhausting workdays, exacerbated by the departure of around 15,000 people from the electricity sector in 2021 and 2022 due to low wages.
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