
Millions in Cuba without electricity after substation failure
HAVANA — Millions of people in Cuba remained without power Saturday after a failure of the nation's electric grid left the island in the dark the previous night.
The massive blackout is the fourth in the last six months as a severe economic crisis plagues the Caribbean country. The Ministry of Energy and Mines, in a statement on social media, attributed the latest outage to a failure at a substation in the suburbs of Havana, the capital.
Internet and telephone service were intermittent about Saturday evening after power went out around 8 p.m. local time Friday.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said on his X account that authorities are 'working intensely to restore stability' to the power system.
Lázaro Guerra, director of electricity at the ministry, said on national television that power was already being generated to support vital services such as hospitals.
A statement from the Cuban Electricity Union released Saturday said the strategy was to create 'microsystems' that will connect to each other to gradually restore electricity across the country. Several of these were already operating in the provinces of Guantánamo, Santiago, Las Tunas and Pinar del Río.
In Sancti Spíritus, the provincial energy company reported on its Telegram channel that more than 200,000 customers in that area had electricity thanks to these microsystems.
Many Cuban families use electric equipment to prepare their meals. The outage could cause food to thaw in refrigerators and possibly spoil due to the island's tropical climate.
'When I was about to start cooking and making some spaghetti, the power went out. 'And now what?' Cecilia Duquense, a 79-year-old housewife who lives in the working-class neighborhood of Central Havana, said Saturday.
In Havana, people were shopping for food Saturday. Businesses were open, although some were operating using batteries or small home generators.
'We are very worried that the food will go bad' in the refrigerator if the blackout lasts much longer, said Frank García, a 26-year-old marker worker in Havana.
Gas stations were also open, but the tunnel that runs under Havana Bay and connects the city to the outskirts was dark.
Cuba suffered similar blackouts in October, November and December. The latest was the first of 2025 but in mid-February authorities suspended classes and work activities for two days due to a shortage of electricity generation that exceeded 50% in the country.
Experts have said the electricity disruptions are a result of fuel shortages at power plants and aging infrastructure. Most plants have been in operation for more than 30 years.
The outages come as Cubans are experiencing a severe economic crisis that analysts have blamed on the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, a program of domestic measures that triggered inflation and, above all, the tightening of sanctions by the United States.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Brits among 9,000 migrants to be sent to Guantanamo in Trump plan to make notorious terror prison a vast detention site
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BRITS are among the 9,000 migrants set to be sent to the infamous Guantanamo Bay in President Donald Trump's plan to make its notorious terror prison a detention site. The first transfers are set to begin within a matter of days as the Trump administration dramatically ramps up its vast crackdown on illegal immigration. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 10 President Donald Trump plans to make Guantanamo's notorious terror prison a detention site Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 10 The first plane of detained migrants arriving at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay on February 4 Credit: AFP 10 Trump said he planned to detain 'criminal illegal aliens' at the notorious Guantanamo Bay military prison Credit: AFP 10 At the start of the year, the US President announced his plans to send up to 30,000 illegal immigrants to detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told reporters at the time that 'the White House is currently working on [using] resources we currently have in Guantanamo Bay' to increase the number of beds for 'the worst of the worst.' 'We're already doing it,' Noem said. 'We're building it out.' The notorious Cuban camp was previously used as a military prison for those captured during George W Bush's "war on terror" after the heinous 9/11 attacks. read more news ELON SECOND THOUGHT Musk says he 'REGRETS' some of his bitter attacks on Trump after X row This week alone, at least 9,000 people are being identified for a potential transfer to the prison as early as Wednesday, according to documents seen by Politico. Roughly a whopping 800 Europeans are on the list of potential Guantanamo detainees - including British and French citizens, the Washington Post reports. Currently roughly 500 migrants have been held at the jail dubbed "Gitmo" for short periods of time in the past few months. According to the Trump administration, it works as a pit stop on the way to being deported to the country those being held came from. The bombshell move represents the administration's further toughening on immigration policy. Critics say the Guantanamo threat works to deter new illegal immigrants from entering the US whilst also encouraging those already in the country to self-deport. The Sun visits Guantanamo Bay One State Department official told Politico: "The message is to shock and horrify people, to upset people - but we're allies." But the deportation plans don't come without legal challenges. A court in Washington is considering a plea to outlaw the use of Guantanamo to house migrants as the American Civil Liberties Union claims they are being held in horrific conditions. Detainees are apparently kept in a rat-infested camp, served inadequate food and denied the weekly change of clothing. Detainees once endured sleep deprivation, waterboarding, and extreme temperature exposure as part of the CIA's 'enhanced interrogation' program. One of the most infamous detainees, Abu Zubaydah, was waterboarded 83 times and kept in a coffin-sized box for hours on end. While the camp once held nearly 800 suspected terrorists, that number has dwindled to just 15, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks. The last remaining detainees exist in a legal limbo, held indefinitely as the US struggles to either prosecute, transfer, or release them. 10 U.S. Navy sailors and Coast Guardsmen erect expeditionary shelter tents Credit: via REUTERS 10 Trump's border czar Tom Homan said the administration would expand the capacity of the hellhole facility as the military planned to put up temporary tents Credit: Reuters 10 The first USmilitary aircraft to carry detained migrants to a detention facility at Guantanamo Bay Credit: Reuters The ACLU accused the Trump administration of using Guantanamo "to frighten immigrants, deter future migration, induce self-deportation, and coerce people in detention to give up claims against removal and accept deportation elsewhere". The US Justice Department vehemently denied the claim, telling the court that Guantanamo is solely used as a temporary stop. Nine Brit citizens were previously held in Guantanamo in 2004, of which five were repatriated. And nine more people who had residency status in the UK but not citizenship were also held at the camp. Trump's border czar Tom Homan previously said the administration would expand the capacity of the hellhole facility. He said: "We're just going to expand upon that existing migrant center." Meanwhile Noem shared images of migrants arriving at the Guantanamo facility. She wrote on social media: "President Donald Trump has been very clear: Guantanamo Bay will hold the worst of the worst. "That starts today." The prison has cost US taxpayers over $6 billion to operate, with an annual budget of $540 million — roughly $13 million per prisoner. A dedicated medical wing, staffed by doctors, psychiatrists, and even dentists, exists to prevent detainees from dying in custody, ensuring they remain locked away indefinitely. What is Guantanamo Bay? By Juliana Cruz Lima, Foreign News Reporter GUANTANAMO Bay has long been synonymous with human rights abuses, indefinite detention, and controversial interrogation techniques. First opened in 2002 by George W. Bush in the wake of 9/11, the high-security facility became a legal black hole. There, suspects could be held without trial, subjected to brutal conditions, and interrogated using 'enhanced techniques'—a euphemism for torture. The prison complex, located on Cuban soil but under US control, is a fortress of isolation. Guard towers loom over the razor-wire fences, motion-activated searchlights sweep the perimeter, and cameras monitor every inch of the facility. Inside, detainees — most clad in orange jumpsuits — have spent decades in concrete cells measuring just 6.8 square feet, often with nothing but a thin mattress, a metal toilet, and a small slit for daylight. Prisoners have been force-fed through nasal tubes during hunger strikes, shackled in stress positions for hours, and subjected to psychological torment. Detainees once endured sleep deprivation, waterboarding, and extreme temperature exposure as part of the CIA's 'enhanced interrogation' program. Prisoners are separated into camps based on their perceived threat level. The most notorious detainees are housed in Camp 5 and Camp 7, which are maximum-security units where prisoners are kept in near-total isolation. Others are held in Camp 6, where detainees live communally but are still closely monitored. Camp X-Ray, the original makeshift site of the prison, was shuttered years ago, but its haunting images of hooded detainees kneeling behind barbed wire remain a symbol of Guantanamo's dark legacy. 10 US Marines heading to the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay Credit: Reuters 10 US Army soldier walking at unused common detainee space in 'Camp 6' detention facility at the US Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay Credit: AFP


Press and Journal
3 hours ago
- Press and Journal
Aberdeen safety firm eyes £1m milestone as global growth accelerates
An Aberdeen process safety engineer who 'always wanted to start his own business' is now leading a fast-growing company with clients across four continents and a £1 million turnover in sight. David Jamieson founded Salus Technical six years ago after leaving his role at energy giant Equinor. The 38-year-old has went on grow the business to 11 employees, more than doubling headcount in the past year. Salus Technical now works with 80 software clients in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the US and South America, and has supported around 30 engineering companies in the UK. David has described his journey as 'fantastic' so far, despite being faced with challenges. Salus Technical, based at Neo House, was founded just a few months before Covid hit. David said: 'Our target this year is to reach £1 million and if you look at our past six months we are well on for that. 'I've always wanted to start my own business, I really loved the idea that you could just make a business up yourself. 'I worked as a process safety engineer for many years, and decided it was an area I could deliver on and thought it was worthwhile. 'It's been really difficult, because probably every single year I've been in business, there's been some sort of challenge to overcome. 'We were only four months old when Covid happened, so all our projects got cancelled, and the company making our software weren't able to support us anymore, so we had to press the restart button again. 'Even other things like, the change of government last year and the budget really slowed down a lot of things.' David plans to keep developing the business and what it offers. He said: 'We're at a million pounds, and that's half and half with engineering and software, so I would really like to get that software revenue on its own over the million pound mark. 'We're trying to improve our products so it appeals to a lot more industries and looking at what new software products we can build as well. 'That's the direction that we're trying to go, but we still want to maintain our engineering and services that we do very much here in the north-east. 'There's a lot of the challenges in the UK energy sector but we're obviously still proud to support UK oil and gas. 'Ultimately, all I want to do is grow my business.' David took part in Opportunity North East's (One) business growth programme with a focus on insights into scaling marketing and funding. Entrepreneurs and founders also gained direct access to investors, sector leaders and international market opportunities. He said: 'The One business growth programme was very helpful. 'Speaking to other founders you find out that everyone has got similar issues and problems so it's good to share stories. 'The mentoring programme was also instrumental and transformative. It helped me as a founder to strategise better and make better decisions.'


The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
What is a digital nomad visa, and how do I get one? The rise of ‘workcations' around the world
It has never been easier to clock in to your job from anywhere, with working from home normalised since the pandemic and meetings migrating from the office to Zoom calls. The dawn of the digital work has meant you can set up your workspace in any location, even if that means on the other side of the world. Digital nomad visas allow people to do just that, giving workers a chance to do their job on their laptops from another country and explore communities, cultural landmarks and natural landscapes while they're at it. In 2020, Covid meant that it wasn't possible to travel the world, tick off bucket-list mountain peaks, relax on a remote beach or meet new people in buzzing cities. But the world 2025 looks very different, with ample opportunity to explore. After the UK left the European Union in 2020, the right to work and live in other European countries was swept away. While a deal is being processed for young workers to gain back this benefit, for others who are over 30 or have their sights set a bit further afield, digital nomad visas unlock the chance to stay in a country longer than a tourist, while still earning money. We've rounded up what we know about digital nomad visas and which countries offer the best ones. What is a digital nomad visa? A digital nomad visa is a temporary permit that allows people who work remotely to move to a different country to live and work. Digital nomads refer to people who do not have a requirement to work from an office or a certain place, meaning they are free to work wherever they want to in the world. The type of work usually requires people to have a job that centres around technology, using a laptop and phone to keep in contact with colleagues or clients. Some countries allow those working for a foreign employer and people who are self-employed or manage their own business to benefit from this visa, even including students who want to work remotely for a year. The digital nomad visa often has a longer validity than a tourist visa, meaning the holder can usually stay for months or even years in certain areas. The visas remain valid from as little as six months, such as in Japan, up to five years, like in Thailand. However, these visas are not typically permanent, meaning that once the permit runs out, remote workers have to leave the country or renew it to stay. What are the requirements for a digital nomad visa? Requirements vary from country to country, but generally the person has to be over 18, earn a certain monthly income, and have a job they can do from anywhere. Some countries only allow higher earners to apply for their visa, such as South Korea, where a minimum income of around £54k is required. Countries like Malaysia open up their visas at less than half of this at £25k. Health insurance and a clean criminal record are also often requirements during the visa application. The visa holders cannot already be employed by a company in the host country, or provide goods and services to businesses there. Usually, you have to be self-employed or work for a foreign employer. Some countries will also only allow people from certain nationalities to apply for their digital nomad visa. Why has there been a rise in digital nomad visas? While the concept is not new, more countries, such as the Philippines and New Zealand, have recently announced they will be introducing digital nomad visas. One of the main motivations is to boost tourism by allowing people to stay longer in the country, promoting slower travel and exploring areas in depth. Relaxing the limits on duration of stay means more money will be spent and tourism-based jobs are more secure, especially in shoulder seasons. The introduction of the visa is also a representation of how countries are adapting to fit the modern digital age. As jobs are increasingly becoming digitised and more people work from home since the pandemic, employees have more flexibility than ever before to travel the world. The demand for digital nomad visas among workers has risen due to the desire to travel without having to rely on annual leave to visit different countries. Alongside exploring new places, immersing in nature or visiting bustling cities, the low cost of living in certain countries is also attractive for digital nomads, allowing their income to become more fulfilling while keeping daily costs low. Many countries also allow partners or children to be added to applications, making the opportunity to live in another country as a family more accessible. Tax exemptions and breaks are also important driving points. For example, in Spain digital nomads pay a flat rate of tax at 24 per cent, no matter their salary (up to €600,000). Over in New Zealand, authorities said that if the person's income is taxed elsewhere, they will be exempt from tax so long as they do not spend more than 92 days in the country within 12 months. The days do not need to be consecutive. Which countries offer digital nomad visas? There are well over 50 countries that offer digital nomad visas to UK citizens, so it all depends on whether you are seeking a retreat tucked away on a remote mountain or a temporary home in a bustling city. A report by Global Citizen Solutions, a boutique investment migration firm, found that 63 per cent of digital nomads come from the 'Global North', which encompasses countries such as the UK, USA, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. The firm analysed 65 different visas, including digital nomad visas and other long-term visas that allow people to work remotely in the country. It found that Spain's digital nomad visa ranked the best, due to the country's high quality of life, internet speed and benefits such as a year-long duration and ability to renew. Estonia, Romania, Malta, Portugal, Canada and Hungary also appeared in the top 10 for their digital nomad visas, while the Netherlands, Norway and France secured spots for visas that make it easy to work in the country. Other countries that offer digital nomad visas include a freelance-only one in Germany, Italy, Greece, Taiwan, Latvia, Malaysia, Japan, the UAE (specifically Dubai and Abu Dhabi), South Korea, New Zealand and Thailand, to name just a few. The Global Citizen Solutions report found that European countries had some of the best digital nomad visas. Meanwhile, the Caribbean had some of the greatest income requirements and visa costs, reaching as high as £1,477.