Ranchuelo Blackout: State Truck Accident Plunges Villa Clara into Darkness
A traffic accidentโ involving a state-owned truck caused a meaningful powerโฃ outage in Ranchuelo, Villa Clara, Cuba, leaving over โข10,000โ residents withoutโค electricity.โข The incident occurred atโฃ the โGran Panel substation, where the truck collided wiht an electrical pole, resulting โin an explosion and fire.
The blackout impacted multiple electricalโ circuits, specifically including: โCircuit 166 (County), Circuit 167 (Virginia), Circuit 168 (County-XX Anniversary), Circuit 170 (Rotunda-12โ Floors), and Circuit 171 โค(Los Caneyes). Additionally, circuits 188, 189, and โ97 were also โคaffected.
Followingโฃ the incident, the Cuban government deployedโ personnel from the Ministry of the Interior โค(MININT), Communist Party officials, and โlocal authorities to the site.
The driver of the truckโข and a minor passenger sustained injuries in the accident and were transported to the “Juan B. Contreras” polyclinic for medical treatment. No fatalities or โขsevere โฃinjuries โฃwere reported.
While some circuits reportedly began to be restored after several hours, the extent โof remaining outages remains unspecified. Details regardingโข the condition โคof the โtruck and theโข precise cause of the accident are currently unconfirmed, despite the vehicle being state-owned and operating in an urban โarea.
This event highlights the pre-existing vulnerabilities within Cuba’s electrical โinfrastructure. The report emphasizes the system’s fragility, a result โฃof insufficient maintenance and investment,โ leaving the population susceptible to widespread โคservice disruptions even fromโ relatively localized incidents.โ The incident underscores a lack ofโ openness in reporting andโ a broader โคinability toโฃ effectively prevent or respond toโ such crises.