A dilapidated building surrounded by a mountain of garbage once again highlights the decay of Havana, where the accumulation of waste has become a recurring health threat, despite the measures announced by the authorities to improve waste collection.
The images, shared this Friday on Facebook by content creator Liena López Delgado, showcase the accumulation of waste at the intersection of Belascoaín and San Miguel in Centro Habana, alongside a dilapidated structure posing a risk of collapse.
"Look at this. And that's a landslide. Look," denounces the voice accompanying the recording, which sparked outrage among users due to the unsanitary conditions in one of the most central areas of the capital.
"Belascoaín and San Miguel, how terrible, how long are we going to live like this with so many diseases," wrote one person. Another user pointed out that "the unsanitary conditions add to all the other problems that the average Cuban faces," while others questioned the authorities' responsibility and their lack of response to the deterioration of public spaces.
The indignation was also expressed with irony. "The Havana Wall... World Heritage," commented a user. Others recalled the late historian of Havana, Eusebio Leal, in light of the neglect of the city's streets. "If he were to raise his head and see his Havana filled with trash in its streets," wrote a commenter.
In September, Escobar Street, close to that main road, was blocked by trash, furniture, debris, and sewage.
In early October, another video shared by López showed the accumulation of waste around the Bernardo García funeral home, on the exterior wall facing Belascoaín.
To that picture, another publication added a report on the state of a section of Zanja Street, covered in waste.
A similar report highlighted the existence of a large garbage dump in Luyanó, in the municipality of Diez de Octubre, which had not been collected for over four months in front of a technical secondary school.
The series of cases shows that the issue affects various neighborhoods in the capital and persists for weeks or months.
The accumulation of waste is particularly concerning amid the epidemiological crisis. Cuba has accumulated over 11,000 estimated cases of dengue so far this year, a figure that is 9.2 times the country's historical average over the last five years, according to the Global Dengue Observatory at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, with data updated as of October 4.
The Ministry of Public Health also noted an increase in acute diarrheal diseases, hepatitis, and respiratory infections.
Although the sources do not allow for attributing these increases to a specific point of garbage accumulation, the persistence of waste and the proliferation of pests exacerbate the risks to public health.
In response to the crisis, the capital authorities incorporated 20 trucks and more than 240 containers from China, with an investment exceeding one million euros. However, the officials themselves acknowledged that these resources "are not the definitive solution."
The pilot project for 30 electric tricycles for garbage collection did not yield results, and its failure was acknowledged by those in charge.
Filed under: