Cuban authorities today announced the death of a 24-year-old firefighter during an operation to extinguish a major fire at oil facilities in Matanzas. This is the second confirmed casualty after the death of the 60-year-old firefighter, which was announced on Saturday.

The fire is “under control” in six days, according to the fire brigade.

The fate of 14 firefighters is still unknown since Saturday morning, when a massive explosion occurred near a tank engulfed in flames after being struck by lightning earlier. All 14 firefighters are presumed dead, yet to be confirmed once the operation is complete.

As a result of a fire at Cuba’s largest oil facility in Matanzas, 100 km east of Havana, 130 people were injured, 22 of them are still in hospitals.

Four tanks with a capacity of up to 52 million liters of crude oil or fuel oil were destroyed. Cuba received assistance from Mexico and Venezuela, who sent equipment and specialists to put out fires at oil facilities.

The loss of millions of liters of fuel, which is strategically important for powering Cuba’s thermal power plants, is expected to exacerbate the already existing problems with the island’s electricity supply.

Source: APE-MPE, AFP.