In the Midst of the Heatwave Cubans Can’t Even Find a Free Glass of Water on the Street

14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Generation Y, Havana, 24 July 2023

I am concerned that not enough emphasis is being given in the national media to warn of the dangers of these high temperatures.

I am concerned that there isn’t a place in the whole city where you can get a free glass of water.

I am concerned that there are hardly any working water fountains left in Havana.

I am concerned that having a fan on for a few hours each day is a luxury that many families cannot afford.

I am concerned that sun creams are only sold in hard currency.

I am concerned that there are hundreds of thousands of Cubans who have not received water through their pipes for weeks.

I am concerned that bottled water is often more expensive than beer.

I am concerned about all the bedridden people who, with these temperatures, do not have access to disposable diapers, wet towels, or an air conditioner.

I am concerned that having an iced drink on the street will become too much for the pocketbook.

I am concerned that in hospitals families have to bring a fan to cool the patient.

I am concerned that those who work from dawn to dusk are not issued hats, long-sleeved shirts and other supplies to protect them from the sun.

I am concerned about so many felled trees in the Cuban capital, so many squares without any shadows.

I am concerned  that we believe that we are used to the heat, that the tropics run through our veins, and we do not see the dangers of the high temperatures that we are experiencing.

I am concerned that so many people may be dying as a result of the excesses of the weather and we do not know it.

I am concerned that while the heatwave makes daily life in Cuba more difficult, some gentlemen in guayaberas — without a drop of sweat — dedicate themselves to spreading slogans from their air-conditioned rooms, calling for “creative resistance” with a mojito in hand, and under the umbrellas by their pools, demand that we give up every last drop of our efforts.

I am concerned.

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