World
Cuba hit by nationwide blackout as grid collapses again
September 19, 2026 at 10:57 AM
Coverage
3 reports · 2 in Arabic, 1 in English · over 3 hours
Cuba's entire electricity grid suffered a total disconnection on Friday, plunging millions into darkness in the latest major blackout to hit the island this year.
- UNE said the outage began around 14:00 local time Friday after a transmission fault in high-voltage lines in central Cuba, compounded by poor weather.
- Power was restored to some priority areas of Havana by late evening, including districts near hospitals and water pumping stations, grid operator UNE said.
- UNE dispatch director Felix Estrada said protocols for the gradual restoration of the system had been activated, with the process ongoing.
- UN human rights experts condemned the US oil blockade, warning that worsening fuel shortages and outages risk deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Cuba.