Cuba's electrical grid suffered a total collapse on Friday, plunging the nation into darkness and leaving millions of people across the island without electricity. This latest nationwide outage is the seventh of the year for the island of over nine million people.
The blackout is the most recent in a series of grid failures, with reports indicating between six and twelve partial or total collapses since late 2024. The island continues to grapple with these outages as it struggles to maintain a stable power supply.
The collapses are attributed to a combination of deteriorating infrastructure, aging thermoelectric plants, and severe fuel shortages. These issues have been significantly worsened by a U.S. pressure campaign and energy blockade that has largely blocked oil from reaching the Caribbean's largest island.
While power began being slowly restored on Saturday, some residents reported there is no way to know when electricity will be fully returned. The U.S. campaign has also triggered condemnation from United Nations experts.