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Explosion damages hotel in Cuban capital; 22 deaths reported

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An explosion that was apparently the result of a natural gas leak caused at least 22 deaths, one child and injured many others Friday. The blast ripped through outer walls of a luxurious hotel located in central Cuba.

Havana Gov. said that no tourists were allowed to stay at the 96-room Hotel Saratoga, which was under renovation. Reinaldo García Zapata told the Communist Party newspaper Granma.

It’s not an attack or a bomb. It is a tragic accident,” President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who visited the site, said in a tweet.

According to Dr. Julio Guerra Izquierdo of the Ministry of Health (chief of hospital services), at most 74 were injured. Among them were 14 children, according to a tweet from Díaz-Canel’s office.

Díaz-Canel said families in buildings near the hotel affected by the explosion had been transferred to safer locations.

Cuban state TV said that an explosion occurred because of a truck that was supplying natural gas for the hotel. However, it did not give any details as to how and why the gas ignited. As rescuers hosed the truck down with water, a white tanker truck could be seen being taken from the spot.

Tourism Minister Juan Carlos García said the hotel was scheduled to reopen Tuesday.

A blast sent smoke into the atmosphere around the hotel. People on the streets stared in wonder, some saying, “Oh My God!” as cars honked their horns and drove off, according to video. This happened in Cuba, where the country is trying to rebuild its important tourism sector after being devastated by coronavirus.

Cuba’s national health minister, José Ángel Portal, told The Associated Press the number of injured could rise as the search continues for people who may be trapped in the rubble of the 19th century structure in the Old Havana neighborhood of the city.

According to Lt. Colonel Noel Silva, of the Fire Department, “We still need to find a large number of people who might be under the rubble.”

The evacuation of a 300-student school located next to the hotel was necessary. García Zapata said five of the students suffered minor injuries.

The area was cordoned off by police as rescue and firefighters workers worked in the rubble of the iconic hotel, which is located 110 meters (100 m) away from Cuba’s Capitol Building.

In 2005, the Cuban government renovated the hotel as part its revitalization of Old Havana. The property is currently owned by Grupo de Turismo Gaviota SA, the tourism arm of the Cuban military. Although the company claimed it was conducting an investigation into the explosion, the company did not respond immediately to an email requesting additional information on the hotel’s renovation.

Visitor VIPs, political leaders and high-ranking U.S. delegations have used the Hotel Saratoga frequently. Beyoncé and Jay-Z stayed there during a 2013 visit to Cuba.

Michel Figueroa was a photographer who claimed that the explosion hit him as he was going by the hotel. He said his head was still hurting ….

Family members of those who worked at the hotel arrived at a hospital to check on them. Among them was Beatriz Céspedes Cobas, who was tearfully searching for her sister.

“She needed to get up and go to work today. She’s a housekeeper, she explained. I live two blocks away. “I felt the sound, but at first I wasn’t able to associate the hotel with it.

Yazira said that an explosion occurred one block from her hotel. She stated, “The whole structure moved.” “I thought it was an earthquake.”

Apart from the impact of the pandemic on Cuba’s tourist sector, there were also difficulties with previous U.S. President Donald Trump’s sanctions which are still in effect under the Biden administration. These sanctions restricted U.S. tourist visits to Cuban islands, and also limited remittances to Cuba from Cubans living in the U.S.

Tourism was beginning to rebound a little earlier in this year. However, Russia’s war in Ukraine led to a boom in Russian tourists, accounting for nearly a third the number of Cuban visitors last year.

Cuba’s government held the closing day of the Varadero tourism convention, which was intended to draw investors.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is scheduled to arrive in Havana for a visit late Saturday and Mexican Foreign Relations Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said the visit would still take place.

García Zapata said structures adjacent to the hotel were being evaluated, including two badly damaged apartment buildings. The neighboring Martí Theater, the Yoruba Association and the Capitol had broken glass and damaged masonry.

Mayiee Pérez said she rushed to the hotel after receiving a call from her husband, Daniel Serra, who works at a foreign exchange shop inside the hotel.

He told her, she said: “I’m fine. I’m fine.” They helped us get out. However, she could not reach him.

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