Enhanced security and safety to mitigate against increased weather-related risks to crucial cargo storage is receiving renewed attention after a lightning strike in Cuba late Friday evening ignited a tank at a crude oil depot facility some 60 kilometres east of Havana.
It is believed that 17 firefighting personnel who first arrived on the scene could have perished in the fast-spreading blaze, as has been reported by the mouthpiece for Cuba’s Communist Party, Granma.
Three journalists who rushed to the fire early on Saturday morning were also admitted with burns after the initial fire caused a secondary explosion in an adjacent tank carrying 52 000 cubic metres of fuel oil.
So far 121 injuries have been confirmed since the weekend, and at least 800 residents have been evacuated from the Matanzas Bay area.
Freight movement at the Port of Matanzas remains suspended after Cuba’s Ministry of Transport announced that all loading and unloading services would be diverted to the ports of Havana and Cienfuegos.
This morning efforts continue to fight the blaze and prevent it from spreading further through the tank farm, coming as it does at a time when Cuba is battling power grid instability and nagging fuel shortages.
Although the island nation is loath to ask for assistance from the United States, which would be practical considering the proximity of the Bay of Matanzas to Florida, Cuba has reluctantly accepted technical advice from America.
Because Cuba lacks the necessary means and expertise to fight the fire on its own, it initially approached ‘friendly nations’ to rush to its aid.
It is not clear though to what extent such help has been forthcoming from Mexico and Venezuela.