The Americas | Caribbean conflagration

Human error may have played a role in Cuba’s oil-terminal fire

It will exacerbate the island’s fuel and power shortages

TOPSHOT - Cubans look the massive fire at a fuel depot in Matanzas, Cuba, on August 8, 2022. - Helicopters scrambled to contain a days-old blaze that felled a third tank at a fuel depot on Monday as the search continued for 16 missing firefighters. (Photo by YAMIL LAGE / AFP) (Photo by YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images)

Lightning hit a storage tank at Cuba’s main oil terminal in Matanzas, starting a fire that spread to three other tanks. One firefighter died and 14 are missing. The lightning rod had not been maintained, say reports in independent media. The fire contributed to a water shortage that forced the shutdown of a nearby power plant. Cuba was already suffering from fuel shortages and blackouts, which had triggered protests.

This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Human error may have played a role in Cuba’s oil-terminal fire”

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