Residents of the capital of Cuba, where the collapse of the national power grid has left millions of people without power, are concerned about the situation, which is compounded by a shortage of fuel for generators and kitchens, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
"We have never encountered such a situation. It is difficult to describe after so many hours without electricity. Plus, there is a liquefied gas crisis, there is no way to cook food, in addition to the heat, mosquitoes and lack of communication. In general, everything is very difficult," a resident of the Havana municipality of Playa told Sputnik.
The first concern for most Cuban families was the non-working refrigerators with expensive and scarce food supplies, which, moreover, cannot be cooked without gas or electricity. In many cases, the population has begun to use charcoal and wood to cook on makeshift stoves.
"There's not much in the fridge, but I think by tomorrow it will all melt and bad," Daniel, a civil servant from Santa Clara, told Sputnik.
Higher-income Cubans, as well as some businesses, are now resorting to using fans and lamps with batteries, diesel generators and photovoltaic panels, each costing several times the average Cuban salary.
"We're open because we have a small power plant that keeps at least the kitchen and refrigerators running, although we don't know how long we can operate this way because the gas stations are closed and we're almost out of fuel," Jaime Diaz, owner of a small private restaurant in Havana, told the agency.
Hours before the total blackout, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero went on television to report on the state of the power grid, which he described as an "energy emergency." Amid the constant power outages, he announced the temporary suspension of non-essential government services and the work of several businesses.
In some communities outside Havana, electricity was available for four to six hours a day before the total collapse of the system, but due to the deteriorating fuel situation, the duration of the outages has increased in the capital.
"I am desperate, my husband and I are over 80 years old, we live on the fifth floor, we can't use the elevator, we can't cook because we have no gas, and this has been going on for many hours. I don't know whether to entrust my soul to the God or the Devil," Teresa Garcia, an elderly resident of the Plaza municipality in Havana, says.