Havana Tornado Victims Disagree with Government’s Triumphalist Accounting

14ymedio, Havana, 30 July 2019 —  Six months after the tornado that hit Havana, the authorities say they have resolved 95% of the damages suffered by the housing stock. This accounting, however, hides the drama of hundreds of families who suffered the total loss of their homes and for whom housing remains unresolved. Of the 1,068 homes … Continue reading “Havana Tornado Victims Disagree with Government’s Triumphalist Accounting”

This is Life for the Victims of the Tornado That Devastated Havana

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 11 May 2019 — To get to the shelter you have to walk more than two kilometers under Havana’s inclement sun. No bus route takes you there. There is not a single sign indicating how to get there. The site doesn’t even have a name. Nobody would remember that old warehouse … Continue reading “This is Life for the Victims of the Tornado That Devastated Havana”

Havana: Venezuela Sneaks in Between the Tornado and the Referendum / Ivan Garcia

Ivan Garcia, 22 February 2019 — Collecting the masonry rubble and the trees severed by the powerful tornado that it several Havana municipalities on 27 January, when the night falls the residents of Luyano take turns to stand guard until dawn to protect the construction materials piled on the sidewalk, bought at half price from … Continue reading “Havana: Venezuela Sneaks in Between the Tornado and the Referendum / Ivan Garcia”

Proposals to Get Help to Havana’s Tornado Victims

14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Generation Y, 29 January 2019 — How to help? This is one of the first questions that arises when, Monday at dawn, we see the images of the destruction left by Sunday night’s tornado that affected several areas of Havana. The campaigns for the collection of resources and food have begun, there are neighbors … Continue reading “Proposals to Get Help to Havana’s Tornado Victims”

Man Dies After a Building Wall Collapses in Havana

14ymedio, Havana, 25 June 2023 — One man died and another was injured on Friday by the partial collapse of a building in a construction zone in the Luyanó neighborhood, in the Diez de Octubre municipality. Although there is no official version of the accident, the details published on social networks indicate that both workers … Continue reading “Man Dies After a Building Wall Collapses in Havana”

San Lazaro, a Havana Street that Wears Rouge and Has Cracked Balconies

14ymedio, Natalia Lopez Moya, Havana, 25 January 2023 — “They are applying rouge to San Lázaro street again,” lamented a neighbor from Centro Habana this Tuesday morning. The facades of the long avenue are being painted so that, on the night of January 27, it will house the official March of the Torches, with the presence … Continue reading “San Lazaro, a Havana Street that Wears Rouge and Has Cracked Balconies”

A ‘March of the Torches’ in Havana With a Huge Deployment of Security Forces

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 27 January 2022 — Cordons of uniformed men and plainclothes agents guarded all the streets through which the official delegation that participated in the March of the Torches on the eve of José Martí’s birthday passed this Thursday night in Havana. But the strong security operation began two days ago … Continue reading “A ‘March of the Torches’ in Havana With a Huge Deployment of Security Forces”

Almost 20 Years Waiting for the Architects to Avoid a Disaster in Central Havana

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 29 October 2021 — Peeling walls, cracks in the ceilings of several apartments and, above all, structural cracks keep the 21 families who live in a building on San Nicolás street near the corner with Salud, in Central Havana, in suspense. “This building was built in 1948 and has never … Continue reading “Almost 20 Years Waiting for the Architects to Avoid a Disaster in Central Havana”

A Year After Tornado in Cuba, Luyano Residents Still Swallowing Dust

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, January 26, 2020 — First it was necessary to see everything. To walk through Mangos, Pedro Perna, San Luis, Quiroga, Melones, Reyes. All those streets of Luyano which, a year ago, showed a scene of terror after a tornado passed through on the night of January 27. Later, returning the same … Continue reading “A Year After Tornado in Cuba, Luyano Residents Still Swallowing Dust”

Something Good Came Out of the Tornado: Solidarity Among Cubans

Iván García, 15 February 2019 — Before the violent tornado overturned cars in the Santos Suárez neighbourhood, pulled out electricity poles, and destroyed hundreds of homes, Aniel, a cook in a five star hotel in Old Havana, hardly said hello to his neighbours. He fenced in his house and transformed it into a fortress, proof … Continue reading “Something Good Came Out of the Tornado: Solidarity Among Cubans”

Requiem for Havana / Fernando Damaso

Fernando Damaso, 19 March 2019 — That Havana is falling apart stopped being news a long time ago. The institutional abandonment, the widespread apathy and irresponsibility, during the six decades that the city has been affected by the “tornado” that hit down in January 1959, have totally destroyed it. In November will be Havana’s 500th … Continue reading “Requiem for Havana / Fernando Damaso”

Why Am I Not Going to the XIII Havana Biennial?

14ymedio, Tania Bruguera, Havana, 14 April 2019 — Before giving my reasons I want to clarify that I admire the work of the curators of La Bienal de La Habana and I do not consider any of my reasons to be their responsibility. Rather, they are a response to the cultural policies of the Ministry of … Continue reading “Why Am I Not Going to the XIII Havana Biennial?”

Requiem for Havana / Fernando Damaso

Fernando Dámaso, 19 March 2019 — That Havana is falling to pieces is hardly news. The institutional neglect, apathy and general irresponsibility, which has affected the city, over the six decades since the “tornado” hit in January 1959, has totally destroyed it. November will be the 500th anniversary of its foundation and it is expected … Continue reading “Requiem for Havana / Fernando Damaso”

From Engineer in Havana to Magazine Director in Kentucky / Ivan Garcia

Iván García, 5 March 2019 — Twenty-five years ago, Luis David Fuentes pedaled 17 kilometers a day on a rough Chinese bicycle through the dark and dilapidated Havana streets towards the CUJAE, today José Antonio Echevarría Technological University, located in Marianao, a municipality in the south of Havana, where he studied mechanical engineering. Those were the … Continue reading “From Engineer in Havana to Magazine Director in Kentucky / Ivan Garcia”

Residents of a Havana Building in Ruins Await Official Response

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 12 March 2019 — Yuderkis Pupo Garcia still spends her days between the shock of the first impact of the tornado and the anguish that causes the desire to return to normal. A resident of the building at 560 Juan Alonso street, between Infanzón and Juan Abreu, as of today she’s watched … Continue reading “Residents of a Havana Building in Ruins Await Official Response”