Cuba: at least 18 dead after an explosion in a famous hotel in Havana – Le Monde

The facade of the five-star rated Saratoga Hotel was largely damaged by the force of the explosion on Friday, May 6, 2022. ADALBERTO ROQUE / AFP At least 18 people were killed and more than 50 injured on Friday 6 May after the strong explosion, probably due to a gas leak, which partially destroyed the Saratoga hotel, in the center of Havana in Cuba. “So far, there are 74 injured, of whom unfortunately 18 have died,” including a child, Julio Guerra, head of hospital services at the Ministry of Health, told a press conference. The Cuban presidency mentioned a toll of 64 injured and 18 dead after this explosion. A little earlier, Miguel Garcia, the director of the Calixto Garcia hospital where some of the injured are treated, had reported that eleven of them were “in extremely serious condition”. “A two-year-old child is undergoing surgery for a fractured skull,” said Miguel Hernan Estévez, director of the Hermanos Almejeiras hospital. For his part, the first secretary of the Communist Party in Havana, Luis Antonio Torres Iribar, had specified at midday that “13 people (were) missing” and considered “possible that other people are trapped” under the rubble. No foreigners are believed to be among the victims, authorities said. An emblematic hotel Rescuers are looking for possible victims in the rubble at the foot of the Saratoga hotel, in Havana, Friday, May 6, 2022. ADALBERTO ROQUE / AFP In the heart of old Havana with its green facade, the hotel, in works, had been closed to tourists for two years. Only employees were inside preparing for its reopening, scheduled for May 10. “According to the first findings, the explosion was caused by a gas leak”, is it specified on the Twitter account of the Cuban presidency. According to the head of the historic district of the Cuban capital Alexis Costa Silva, quoted by the state media Cubadebate, a cylinder of liquid gas was being changed in the hotel. The cook smelled gas and discovered a crack in the pipe which caused the explosion. “It was neither a bomb nor an attack, it was a regrettable accident,” said President Miguel Diaz-Canel, who arrived on the spot shortly afterwards, thus wanting to put an end to rumors on social networks which evoked the attacks. bombings in several hotels in the 1990s, sponsored by Cuban exiles. The first four floors of the 5-star rated Saratoga Hotel with its 96 rooms, two restaurants and rooftop pool were blown up in the blast, which occurred around 11 a.m. and the floor was littered with debris and pieces of glass. A few minutes after the explosion, a thick cloud of smoke and dust spread over the avenue du Prado, where this establishment is located, a stone’s throw from the famous Capitol. Emotion from Washington to Caracas A dozen ambulances and five fire engines were mobilized. At the end of the afternoon, the tanker was evacuated while a machine gradually cleared the rubble. Several vehicles were destroyed near this hotel known to have hosted several celebrities in recent years including Mick Jagger, Beyoncé and Madonna. Built in 1880 to house shops, the building was converted into a hotel in 1933 and renovated into a luxury establishment in 2005. Washington, through State Department spokesman Ned Price, conveyed its “sincere condolences to all those affected by the tragic explosion”. The head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell said on Twitter that he had spoken with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez “to take an interest in the situation after the explosion in Havana and to convey to him my condolences and my solidarity with the Cuban people. “. Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, a close ally of Cuba, called his Cuban counterpart to express his condolences: “The Cuban people receive the solidarity and support of all the peoples of the world and in particular the Bolivarian people of Venezuela”. The World with AFP

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