STORY: :: Hundreds of thousands of Cubans
are experiencing water shortages
:: as officials blame crumbling
infrastructure and a lack of fuel
:: Havana, Cuba
:: Pedro Martino, Water distribution manager at Havana church
“We depend on water coming in. If water arrives, the tanks are filled, if it doesn’t come, we can’t provide water. When they cut off power, we can’t give water. One thing depends on the other, and that’s the game we play.”
The capital Havana is most affected by water shortages, though most of the country’s largest cities report more 30,000 clients without water, the government has said.
Officials blame the growing problems on crumbling infrastructure and a persistent lack of fuel, symptoms of a festering economic crisis that has blighted growth and left the communist-run country nearly bankrupt.
Spare parts for outdated water infrastructure, like pipes and pumps, are in short supply, officials said. And without fuel and adequate transportation, even emergency water supply by cistern truck has been limited, according to residents.
Isolated protests have erupted in some areas, as residents overwhelmed by the growing list of problems lose patience in the still blistering heat of the tropical summer.
