Cuba is experiencing a nationwide power outage after the country’s main power plant failed, leaving 10 million people without power.
The energy ministry announced on social media that the country’s power grid collapsed at around 11:00 (15:00 GMT) on Friday.
Grid officials said they did not know how long it would take to restore power.
The island has suffered months of rolling blackouts, prompting the prime minister to declare an “energy emergency” on Thursday.
Friday’s total blackout occurred after the Antonio Guiteras power plant in Matanzas – the largest on the island – shut down.
President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said the situation was his “absolute priority”.
“There will be no respite until the power is restored,” he wrote on X.
The head of the energy supply department at the Energy Ministry, Lazara Guerra, was later quoted by AFP news agency as saying the process of restoring power was in the early stages.
“Some level of power generation” will be used to start up power plants in some parts of the country, she added.
Earlier on Friday, officials announced that all schools and non-essential activities, including nightclubs, would be closed until Monday.
Non-essential workers were encouraged to stay home to ensure power supplies, and non-essential government services were suspended.
According to local media, Cubans are also encouraged to turn off energy-consuming appliances such as refrigerators and ovens during peak hours.
“This is crazy,” Eloy Fon, an 80-year-old pensioner living in central Havana, told AFP.
“It shows the fragility of our electricity system… We have no reserves, nothing to sustain the country, we are living day to day.”
Bárbara López, 47, a digital content creator, said she “could barely work two days.”
“It was the worst I’ve seen in 47 years,” she said. “They’re really messed up now… We don’t have electricity or mobile data.”
Prime Minister Manuel Marrero addressed the public in a televised message on Thursday, blaming deteriorating infrastructure, fuel shortages and growing electricity demand.
“The fuel shortage is the biggest factor,” he said.
Head of the National Electricity Union (UNE) Alfredo López Valdés also admitted that the island is facing a challenging energy situation, which is mainly due to energy shortages.
Prolonged power outages – especially common ones like this – are always tense times in Cuba.
This is partly because the possibility of keeping the lights on could be a potential public order problem for the Cuban Government.
In July 2021, thousands of protesters flooded the streets in protests sparked by days-long power outages in much of the country.
The despair caused by precious food being wasted in warm refrigerators and freezers is exacerbated by people having to live for days without air conditioning or ceiling fans in the island’s stifling heat.
In many buildings, electric pumps deliver water to taps, so no electricity also means no water.
Furthermore, no gas at the pumps means people cannot work or use their cars to solve basic problems or meet urgent needs.
The Cuban government is increasingly aware that many people on the island are less afraid to speak up about many of the daily problems they face on the island.
Some are even willing to take to the streets and chant anti-government slogans, if conditions permit.
In March, hundreds of people in Cuba’s second largest city, Santiago, staged a rare public protest over frequent power outages and food shortages.
