Building Collapses, kills one but thousands at risk

Rashaed Esson

Staff Writer

#Cuba, October 4, 2023 – At least three people are dead after the partial collapsing of a building in Havana Cuba on Tuesday night, others left trapped beneath the rubble sustaining critical injuries, the municipal government says.

The partially collapsed building, home to 13 families and 54 people, is reported as dilapidated.

Rescuers work tirelessly through Tuesday night into Wednesday morning to later discover two people trapped in the debris following a second collapse in the early morning hours due to wind and rain.

Those rescued, but injured were taken to the hospital under critical conditions.

The collapse comes as no surprise as hundreds upon hundreds of housing structures in Cuba are in great need of maintenance and repair exposed media reports. More than 850,000 structures said Rene Mesa Villafaña, Cuba’s Construction Minister to Reuters news agency.

Another incident of a government failure on housing is the collapsing of an apartment building in Cameroon in July, killing 33 people and injuring five.

The minister has assured that the government is making efforts to construct better housing, but did not lay out the plan to take care of the rundown state of housing for the millions of Cubans.