A video shared on social media shows a section of Zanja Street in Central Havana covered with heaps of garbage, specifically in the area in front of Plaza San Fan Con in Chinatown.
The recording, published on Friday by the user Liena López Delgado on her Facebook profile, was accompanied by comments that specify the extent of the accumulation. One of them pointed out that the trash dump extends from Lealtad Street to Campanario.
The images provoked numerous reactions among users, several of whom questioned the deterioration of an area in the Cuban capital. "The Marvelous City turned into the dump of the Caribbean," wrote one person.
Other comments referred to the presence of rodents and the fear of walking on the sidewalks. "There must be mice everywhere, it's scary to walk on the sidewalk," noted one user, while another asked, "How long will this go on, my goodness?"
Concerns also focused on the potential health consequences of waste accumulation. Some users mentioned issues like pollution, mosquitoes, rats, and epidemics, while others questioned why reports about the situation continue without what they perceive as visible changes.
"Amidst landslides and streets plagued by garbage, how can Havana be considered the capital of a country?" one of the commentators raised.
In September, a large dump was reported at the intersection of Águila and Estrella, also in Centro Habana. In Vedado, trash was piled up along almost a block on 25th Street near the corner of Avenida de los Presidentes or Calle G.
The deterioration has reached unimaginable extremes for a capital. At the beginning of September, two fetuses were found among the trash at the corner of Zanja and Oquendo, just a few blocks away from the section shown in the video.
That same month, a fire originating from an improvised landfill destroyed the side door of a parish in Los Sitios, the church of San Judas Tadeo and San Nicolás de Bari, belonging to the community of Los Escolapios.
At the beginning of the year, only 44 out of the 106 garbage trucks in the capital were operational—41% of the total fleet—due to a shortage of diesel and mechanical issues, according to official data.
Authorities recently added 20 trucks and more than 240 containers from China, but acknowledged that these resources "are not the definitive solution."
A pilot project with 30 electric tricycles ended up being an acknowledged failure by its own managers.
In September, the Global Dengue Observatory reported 7,133 cases of dengue in Cuba for the year to date, a number 7.4 times higher than the expected level for this time of year.
Shortly after, the Ministry of Public Health publicly acknowledged an increase in dengue, diarrhea, and other illnesses, without disclosing complete official figures.
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