The Paper's reporter Nan Boyi
In the early morning of August 8, local time, the third oil storage tank of the oil storage base in The Province of Matanzas, Cuba, exploded. Pictures of this article People's Vision
In the early morning of August 8, local time, the third oil storage tank of the oil storage base in The Province of Matanzas, Cuba, exploded. A few days ago, two local oil storage tanks have exploded and caused fires.
According to Al Jazeera, the fire in the first oil storage tank has now been extinguished. However, the local government said that late in the night of August 7, the oil storage base exploded again, after the second oil storage tank that exploded collapsed after burning for nearly 40 hours, and the fuel spill inside the tank implicated the third oil storage tank. After the explosion of the third oil storage tank in the early morning of August 8, it endangered other surrounding oil storage tanks. A thermal power plant near the oil storage base has ceased operations due to the fire.
On August 8, 2022, local time, in Matanzas, Cuba, people sat on horse-drawn carriages and watched the black smoke from the fire in the fuel depot.
On the evening of August 5, the oil storage base was struck by a bolt of lightning, which ensued in a fire and explosion. Mario Sabines, governor of Matanzas, said progress had been made in previous firefighting efforts with the help of Mexico and Venezuela. Sarbins said the fire spread from one tank to another, and the current fire encircled the range where the three tanks were located, with flames and black smoke making it difficult for firefighters to handle the fire. At present, the local smoke is billowing and officials are requiring people to wear masks or stay indoors. Officials said the local air may be filled with toxic substances such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.
On August 8, 2022, local time, in Matanzas, Cuba, a firefighting helicopter was carrying water.
The Matanzas oil storage base is cuba's largest oil storage base, and it is also equipped with the only terminal facility in the country that can handle large tankers. In July, a tanker carrying more than 700,000 barrels of Russian crude arrived at the port of Matanzas. Some analysts pointed out that even if the terminal facilities are not affected, they are unlikely to unload from the tank in the near future, because the tanks, valves, etc. of the tank may be damaged. Moreover, it was the largest oil industry accident in Cuba in decades.
According to CCTV News, at present, Cuba is in the predicament of energy shortage and insufficient power supply, and the outside world is worried that the explosion will aggravate the energy supply shortage in Cuba. The Cuban public health department reported on August 8 that as of 10 o'clock on the same day (22 o'clock on August 8, Beijing time), the explosion accident had caused 1 death, 16 missing people, and 125 injuries, of which 101 injured had been discharged.
Responsible editor: Zhu Runyu Photo editor: Chen Feiyan
Proofreader: Yijia Xu