On the same street and during the same night, solar panels were stolen from a nursing home.
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, June 16, 2026 — The Metropolitan Bank branch located at Dolores and 18th Street in Lawton, Havana, was robbed Monday night during a blackout, as confirmed by 14ymedio at the scene. “They broke the ATM and got in through there,” a resident living near the branch told the newspaper, although there was no visible sign today that the bank had been burglarized.
Several retirees were surprised by the news on Tuesday when they found the branch closed. Tuesday was the day they were scheduled to collect their pensions. For that reason, it is plausible that the bank had more cash on hand than usual. Currently in Havana, individuals cannot withdraw more than 1,000 pesos at a time, and only in small denominations. “I imagine they must have brought a truckload of 20-peso bills,” one customer remarked with bitter irony.
The Ministry of the Interior immediately launched an operation in response, but authorities have provided no information about the incident.
On the same street, Dolores, and during the same blackout, thieves also stole the solar panels from a nursing home located at the corner of 11th Street.
These incidents add to the growing list of crimes committed under the cover of blackouts, which leave streets and homes in complete darkness. “After 8:00 at night it’s impossible to go out, not only because of the darkness, but because people are being robbed and thieves are even breaking into apartment buildings while the owners are still inside,” a resident of the Reparto de los Médicos neighborhood in San José de las Lajas told this newspaper two months ago.
Power outages are approaching 48 hours in some areas, exhausting the population’s patience and triggering numerous protests, often involving residents banging pots and pans. Also on Tuesday, Gerardo Hernández Nordelo, coordinator of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDRs), posted on social media that he was in La Güinera, one of Havana’s neighborhoods where the repression of the July 11 and 12, 2021 demonstrations was particularly severe. There, according to the former spy, “there are districts affected by a breakdown that has prolonged the blackout for nearly 40 hours, causing frustration among residents.”
The daily report issued by Cuba’s Electric Union itself acknowledges that service was disrupted for more than 24 hours yesterday, as the power deficit persisted “throughout the early morning hours.” With the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant showing no signs of a quick recovery, nine thermoelectric generating units remain offline, along with more than 100 distributed-generation plants that are out of service due to fuel shortages.
During Tuesday evening’s peak demand period, Cuba is expected to be short by 2,000 megawatts (MW) out of a maximum demand of 3,000 MW, two-thirds of the electricity needed. Only 1,030 MW of generating capacity will be available.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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