'We must power through problems.' Cubans adapt as new blackout hits the island

Record ID: 1983692

  • Title: 'We must power through problems.' Cubans adapt as new blackout hits the island
  • Date: 15th March 2025
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MUSICIAN, VICTOR RAUL BRACHO, SAYING: “There was a big blackout in our country. I think many people are carrying on with their daily lives. I came here to rehearse because I have to work and record (music). I try to go on with my life because it’s not that we are used to problems, but we must power through problems. We need to say ‘we can do it,’ carr
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Cuba blackout grid system
  • Location: HAVANA, CUBA
  • City: HAVANA, CUBA
  • Country: Cuba
  • Topics: South America / Central America,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA002911815032025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Havana residents did their best to go on with their daily lives on Saturday (March 15) as Cuba underwent a new blackout after the nationwide electric grid failed on Friday night (March 14).
    Business owners resorted to petrol power generators in an attempt to keep perishable products such as meat and cheese fresh.
    Some government buildings placed power strips on the sidewalk so people could charge their phones and torches.
    Cuba's grid failed Friday evening around 8:15 p.m. (0015 GMT) after an ageing component of a transmission line at a substation in Havana shorted, beginning a chain reaction that completely shut down power generation across the island, UNE officials said. Officials said they had begun the process of firing up the country's decades-old generation plants, but gave no timeline for restoring service.
    Cuba blames its economic woes on a Cold War-era U.S. trade embargo, a web of laws and regulations that complicate financial transactions and the acquisition of essentials like fuel and spare parts.
    (Production: Alien Fernandez, Anett Rios, Mario Fuentes, Nina Lopez)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: This clip's Audio includes copyrighted material. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing the audio contained in this clip.
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