Cuba's power grid collapses for third time in ten days amid US oil blockade

Cuba's national power grid collapsed for the third time in ten days, pushing the island nation of 9.5 million people closer to a humanitarian and political crisis. The repeated blackouts come amid a six-month oil blockade imposed by the United States, which has severely restricted fuel supplies. The country's infrastructure has been deteriorating for years due to economic sanctions, lack of investment, and inefficiencies. The situation has led to growing public frustration and sporadic unrest, with citizens facing sweltering heat without electricity for essential services like water pumping and refrigeration. The Cuban government blames the US embargo, while critics point to systemic failures. The grid's repeated failures raise fears of a total and unrecoverable collapse.

Global Impact

The crisis is primarily humanitarian and political. Economically, Cuba's collapse would disrupt regional tourism and remittance flows, with secondary effects on Caribbean supply chains.