Nationwide blackout persists as hurricane damage strains Cuba’s fragile power grid

After Hurricane Ian tore through Cuba last week, Ivette Garrido was relieved to secure 6 kilograms (13 pounds) of subsidised chicken for her family, planning to store it in the freezer for the coming days. However, the long-lasting power outage caused by the storm has left her grappling with a thawing freezer and soaring temperatures. Now, she faces the grim possibility of feeding the chicken to her three dogs before it spoils.

The power failure, which has affected millions, continues to linger as the government has not provided an official estimate of how many remain without electricity. On Thursday, authorities reported that only 10% of Havana’s population had regained power, while Garrido, who lives in the town of Cojimar near the capital, struggles to manage the situation. “We are not having a very good time, trying to survive, to keep things from thawing,” she said, adding that she lives with her mother and 19-year-old daughter.

Garrido’s family is not alone in their suffering. Hurricane Ian initially knocked out power in a few provinces on Tuesday, but the situation quickly escalated as the storm’s winds caused a nationwide collapse of the power grid, leaving the entire country of 11 million people without electricity for the first time in living memory. In addition to the power outage, the storm also resulted in the deaths of three people and caused damage that has yet to be fully assessed.

While power was restored sporadically in some areas, the outages persisted and even worsened in others. Experts warned that the power grid’s vulnerability was exposed by the storm, and repairs will require significant time and resources, both of which are in short supply. Cuban authorities have pledged to work around the clock to restore electricity, but residents in Havana and beyond continue to struggle with the consequences.

The lack of electricity has left people without access to water, as the pumps that bring water to households rely on electrical power. Many households that previously relied on electric stoves are now unable to cook, further complicating daily life. “We’ve never been without electricity for so long,” Garrido lamented, adding that the outage, initially predicted to last 24 to 36 hours, has stretched beyond 48 hours. “It’s criminal. Who is responsible for this?”

Across Cuba, similar scenes are unfolding. Interviews with residents in cities such as Holguín, Guantánamo, and Santiago revealed widespread electricity shortages, with most reporting no power in their neighbourhoods. The outage occurred due to failures in the connections between the three main regions of the island, exacerbated by the hurricane’s winds.

Cuba’s ageing power infrastructure, weakened by years of underfunding and U.S. sanctions, was already in a fragile state before the storm. The country’s power grid consists of 13 plants, many of which are outdated thermoelectric facilities, and small plants introduced after an energy reform in 2006. The maintenance of these plants has been further hampered by fuel shortages and financial constraints.

Jorge Piñon, an expert on Latin American energy at the University of Texas, likened the grid’s failure to a domino effect, where a fault in one part of the system quickly led to a nationwide collapse. “The patient is now on life support,” Piñon remarked, referring to the power grid’s dire condition.

Cuba’s ongoing economic crisis, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and U.S. sanctions, has left the government with limited resources to address the growing energy deficit. Piñon warned that recovery from this disaster will be a lengthy process that will also have to contend with the power generation issues that existed prior to the hurricane. “This will come at a high economic cost that the country cannot afford,” he concluded.

For the people of Cuba, the struggle continues, as they face an uncertain recovery from both the hurricane’s destruction and the power grid’s collapse.