Cuba experienced a total power grid collapse on Friday, leaving millions of residents without electricity in what sources describe as either the sixth or seventh nationwide blackout since January. The outage stems from fuel shortages, crumbling infrastructure, and a U.S. energy blockade, disrupting water, transportation, and communications across the island.
Cuba’s energy infrastructure suffered yet another catastrophic failure on Friday, plunging the entire island into darkness according to the U.S. Embassy in Havana. The blackout marks at least the sixth nationwide power failure since January, when the United States cut off fuel supplies to the island nation, though Fox News notes Friday’s marks the seventh this year. The Ministry of Energy and Mines announced the islandwide blackout on its official X account, stating that officials had begun activating service-restoration protocols.
The embassy confirmed that the failure was due to the collapse of Cuba’s electrical grid,
while Cuban regime media reported that the reason for the collapse is under investigation and the timeline to restore power is unknown.
Transmission Failures and Severe Weather Compound the Crisis
According to Cuban authorities, a failure reportedly occurred in transmission lines in the western part of the country, causing the system to collapse in that area as far as Matanzas province, and the eastern section of the island was subsequently disconnected. Compounding the mechanical failures, the official newspaper Granma reported that “unstable” weather conditions further aggravated the grid’s situation.
By dusk on Friday, power had been restored to 5% of users in Havana, which has a total of about 862,000 customers, according to official data. Emergency recovery efforts focused on establishing small power-distribution “micro-islands” in the provinces of Camagüey, Pinar del Río and Granma, while some systems serving hospitals and other emergency facilities were being reactivated.
Daily Realities for Residents Amid Constant Blackouts
Mercedes Rodriguez, a 60-year-old worker in Havana, described the depth of the crisis to The Associated Press as she waited for public transportation to return home.
No one can stand these constant blackouts. There isn't enough food, there's no water, there's no electricity — you have no idea,
Mercedes Rodriguez, a 60-year-old worker in Havana, told The Associated Press. The country is in such a sad state, and there are no words for what we're going through.
Abilén Marrero, a homemaker, sat resignedly at the entrance to her building in central Havana on Friday, noting the total uncertainty surrounding service restoration.
Maybe it'll come back this afternoon or tomorrow—there's no way to know. We just have to wait,
she said.
U.S. Energy Blockade and Escalating Diplomatic Tensions
Power grid collapses have become increasingly common over the past two years because of the severe economic crisis gripping the island. Conditions worsened since January, after the United States imposed an energy blockade aimed at forcing a change in Cuba’s political system. Mr. Trump signed an executive order that would impose tariffs on countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba.
The restrictions prevent Cuba from importing the fuel needed to operate its thermoelectric power plants, as well as replacement parts required to maintain infrastructure that in many cases has become obsolete. Just one tanker of fuel has been delivered since, by a Russian tanker in March. The two most recent nationwide blackouts occurred in early August, following others in July and March, as well as several regional outages. Even when the national power grid is working, Cubans regularly endure outages lasting more than 30 consecutive hours. Ernesto Soberón Guzman, the Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, called the outages a collective punishment
in a conversation with CBS News last month.
Public Safety Warnings and Ongoing Vulnerabilities
The U.S. Embassy in Havana issued an alert stating, All U.S. citizens in Cuba or planning to travel to Cuba should be aware and plan accordingly. There are reports of cellphone and internet outages.
The embassy added that Cuba’s electrical grid is increasingly unstable,
which has led to “multiple” nationwide power outages in the last few months.
The embassy further stated, The electrical system remains vulnerable, and additional regular outages have been occurring more frequently and for longer periods. Scheduled power cuts occur daily, and unscheduled outages persist throughout Cuba.
Even when there isn’t a national outage, the country often endures rolling blackouts that leave millions without power.