A plume of smoke rose from the building, located on the corner of Malecón and F in Havana, for more than half an hour.
14ymedio, Havana, 22 June 2024 — With help from a downpour, firefighters were trying to subdue a fire on the upper floors of the Girón building in Havana’s Vedado district on Saturday afternoon. Photos and videos posted by area residents on social media showed a plume of smoke rising from the building, located on the corner of Malecón and F Street.
A nearby resident reported that flames seemed to be coming from the elevator machine rooms on the top floor. It is unknown at this time if there were any injuries or fatalities. Residents of the property began pouring out onto the street after they heard the fire alarm go off, smelled smoke and heard the sirens of fire trucks.
“Hotspots persist but the fire seems to be largely under control. The firefighters are evacuating the residents,” reported Canal Caribe at 1:00 PM on its Facebook page. It also posted images showing flames still coming from some areas at the top of the building.
The seventeen-story Girón building was designed by Cuban architect Antonio Quintana and built using poured-in-place reinforced concrete. The passing years, lack of maintenance and proximity to the sea have turned what was once a jewel of modern design into a peeling ruin, with fragments of its façade missing and much of its internal structure damaged.
Composed of two blocks connected by long passageways, the building has become a headache for its residents, who find it difficult to rent or sell units in a building with a reputation for being a modern-day ruin. “It’s become a vertical slum. Maybe something fell off and started a fire,” speculated a seventh-floor resident, who was one of the first to evacuate.
“My son called me. He lives nearby and was frightened when he saw the smoke. I grabbed my cat and headed down the stairs,” she says. “Much of Havana is without water today. They told us the electrical system has been affected and they’re still evacuating people who haven’t been able to leave.”
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