No electricity, no gas, no sleep: Cubans on edge amid endless outages

Four months into US oil blockade, Cubans see island drained as state electric company fights to provide even a few hours of power a day The doctor called from the darkness, a shadowy figure sitting on the stoop of his apartment building. “I want to tell you we’ve been four days without light,” he said. “And without electricity, water is also a problem. And there are mosquitoes everywhere.” From the buildings around came a cacophony, as beyond dark windows people smashed pots against pans. It was a cacerolazo, a traditional form of protest which has now become commonplace in Cuba amid seemingly endless rolling blackouts. Two months ago, Habaneros talked about how the situation was far worse in the countryside. No longer: the doctor was sitting in the heart of the capital, just 100 yards from the stage opposite the US embassy, where, just a few weeks ago, the former president Raúl Castro celebrated International Workers Day. Cuba is now four months into a US oil blockade that has seen the island drained, in almost every way. Three weeks ago, the energy minister, Vicente de la O, told the public: “We have no fuel, no more reserves.” The state electric company is fighting to provide ev