Images Surface of Tallapiedra Electrical Substation Fire

Photos capturing a blaze that triggered a major blackout in Havana have emerged following the incident at the Tallapiedra electrical substation, located on Avenida del Puerto in Old Havana, this past Saturday.

The fire, which erupted around 5:00 p.m., directly disrupted electricity services across multiple districts in the Cuban capital, impacting areas such as Old Havana, Central Havana, Cerro, 10 de Octubre, and Plaza. Officials confirmed via Telegram that the blaze originated in an underground substation, causing an outage that left thousands of residents without power. Since the incident, technicians from Havana's Electric Company have been diligently working to restore the service.

"An outage in the Tallapiedra substation due to a fire has affected the area. The service will be reinstated as soon as repairs are completed," authorities stated in a brief announcement.

This incident occurred during a particularly challenging time for the National Electric System (SEN), which had already reported a maximum estimated disruption of 1,560 MW since early morning, according to the Electric Union (UNE).

Photos shared on Facebook reveal plumes of smoke rising from Tallapiedra's vicinity, along with firefighters and Electric Company workers actively managing the situation. The increasing frequency of blackouts in Cuba has led to mounting frustration among citizens, who often sum up the country's predicament with a phrase frequently seen on social media: "It never stops raining."