Cuban authorities confirmed 40 people killed in Hotel Saratoga explosion
Cuban rescue workers retrieved Monday several dead bodies from the scene of an explosion that destroyed much of the luxury Hotel Saratoga in Havana, bringing the death toll to 40.
The Ministry of Public Health confirmed the death of at least forty people in its latest release, up from 35 reported at noon. Eighteen people injured remain hospitalized, including four adults and two children in critical condition.
The head of the fire department, Luis Guzmán, said four bodies were recovered Sunday night into Monday morning, according to the official news outlet Cubadebate. A local Communist Party official said they were all hotel workers.
State media also reported that a dozen people are reported missing.
Fifty-one workers were believed to have been present inside the building at the time of the explosion around 11 a.m Friday. The blast destroyed the hotel’s facade, tore down walls on several floors and caused significant damage to a nearby residential building, leaving a wide gap where the two structures joined.
More than 20 buildings, including the historic Teatro Martí, a Baptist church and a primary school, also suffered damage. Most were multifamily residential buildings.
The fire department chief said the search and rescue team was still trying to find people trapped in the rubble, but the operation was slowed down by the risk of the building collapsing.
The five-star Saratoga Hotel was readying to reopen for international tourists this week after two years of closure due to the pandemic when the explosion derailed the plans and created chaos in a central hub in Havana.
Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel has said the explosion was an accident that might be linked to a gas leak.
The Hotel Saratoga, a restored 19th century building with 96 rooms, is owned and operated by Gaviota SA, a tourism company under the military-run conglomerate known as GAESA. Both entities are under U.S. sanctions.
This story was originally published May 9, 2022 at 1:51 PM.