Cuba was hit by a nationwide blackout Friday after the country’s electrical grid collapsed, according to the U.S. Embassy in Havana.
The embassy attributed the sweeping outage to the “collapse of Cuba’s electrical grid.”
Cuban state media reported that officials were investigating the cause, but said there was no estimate for when electricity would be restored.
“All U.S. citizens in Cuba or planning to travel to Cuba should be aware and plan accordingly,” the embassy said, warning of reported cellphone and internet disruptions. It also described the island’s power network as “increasingly unstable,” with “multiple” nationwide blackouts reported in recent months.
The sun sets over Havana during a nationwide blackout Friday. (Adalberto Roque/AFP via Getty Images)
The embassy said Cuba’s energy system remains vulnerable, with power cuts occurring more often and lasting longer. Daily outages are scheduled in some areas, while unplanned blackouts continue across the country.
Cuba’s Ministry of Energy also acknowledged the outage in a social media post.
A bicycle taxi moves along a Havana street during Friday’s island-wide blackout. (Yami Lage/AFP via Getty Images)
The nation’s electricity network has been strained by fuel shortages, the U.S.-imposed oil blockade and aging, deteriorating infrastructure.
People gather in a darkened building lobby during Friday’s blackout in Havana, Cuba. (Ricardo Arduengo/Reuters)
Even outside nationwide failures, rolling blackouts frequently cut electricity for millions of Cubans.
The previous nationwide outage occurred only last month, making Friday’s collapse the seventh island-wide blackout recorded this year.
