A Cuban described how a typical afternoon on the island unfolds when the electricity goes out: the fan stops working, the heat prevents any rest, and a routine begins of cooking with charcoal, swatting mosquitoes, and hoping for rain to cool things down.
In a video shared on TikTok, the woman recounts with a mix of irony and resignation the difficulties that thousands of Cuban families face daily due to prolonged blackouts.
"Imagine that you are at home after a busy morning of work and you have the afternoon free... you lie down on the bed and just when you start to fall asleep, you feel the fan turn off," he recounts.
The interruption of electrical service marks the beginning of a series of inconveniences. Without electricity to turn on the fan and, at times, without gas to prepare food, cooking with charcoal becomes one of the alternatives to solve the issue of meals.
The situation doesn't improve when night falls either. The Cuban describes how she has to bathe before going to bed, leave the windows open to try to combat the heat, and wave a handkerchief to scare away the mosquitoes while she waits for a downpour to arrive.
"There is no current, connection, or coverage," he adds, referring to the difficulties in communicating during power outages.
Their account aligns with the experiences of numerous families who, faced with the lack of electricity and high temperatures, have chosen to sleep on rooftops, in parks, and even along the Malecón to find some relief during the nights.
Power outages also affect communications. ETECSA acknowledged that up to 47.5% of its mobile radio bases may become inoperative during prolonged power supply interruptions, a situation that limits access to calls and the Internet.
The Cuban energy crisis has worsened during 2026, with widespread power outages in various provinces. In August, CNN en Español documented the struggles of the island's residents to perform daily activities such as cooking, resting, or preserving food due to the lack of electricity supply.
The lack of electricity, in addition to disrupting rest and household chores, exacerbates the difficulties faced by those who must endure the tropical heat without fans or other means to cool their homes.
The Cuban woman concludes her story with a phrase that encapsulates the exhaustion this reality brings: "It’s that difficult; it feels like both a joke and a horror movie, but this is the daily life of millions of Cubans, and yes, it is today, in 2026."
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