Cuba Marks Two Days of Official Mourning for Fire Victims

Cuban flag at half mast in Revolution Square, Havana, August 18, 2022.

Two days of official mourning to honour the 16 front line workers who lost their lives battling the devastating oil fire at the Matanzas fuel depot have been decreed by President Miguel Díaz-Canel. The period of mourning, being observed throughout the country, began at 6:00 am Thursday, August 18 and will continue until midnight on Friday, August 19.

Flags across Cuba are flying at half mast to mark the sad occasion. On Friday, August 19, funeral honours will be held at the Firefighters’ Museum in Matanzas for all those who fell in the line of duty. There, between the hours of 10:00 am and 5:00 pm the population is invited to offer their expressions of grief and solidarity.

Part of the tribute at the Matanzas provincial Firefighters Museum to those killed.

Following the visitation, starting at 6:00 pm there will be a funeral procession to the Pantheon for Fallen Defenders in the Matanzas cemetery where an interment ceremony will be held for the families.

On Wednesday, August 17 the President of Cuba’s Forensic Medicine Society, Dr. Jorge González announced that an exhaustive search carried out at the site of the inferno had turned up 14 groups of bone fragments, corresponding to the number of persons who had been missing since the early morning hours of August 6. He explained that the extremely high heat of the fire when they perished made it impossible to identify the remains that were recovered, even using the most advanced forensic technology. Their photos are shown below. Two other persons were killed in the fire: Juan Carlos Santana Garrido, from the Fire Department of the Camilo Cienfuegos Oil Refinery, and Elier Manuel Correa Aguilar, Fire Truck Chief at the Matanzas Airport Command.

The Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) extends condolences to the families, co-workers and friends of those who lost their lives in the course of courageously doing their duty. It extends solidarity to the Cuban government and people for the exemplary way in which they worked together to save lives and ensure that all those affected by this tragic accident are taken care of. Our Party offers its support, in whatever capacity it is able to help, as the momentous effort to overcome the losses caused by the fire proceed under the conditions of an inhuman, suffocating U.S. blockade.

Fourteen of the 16 people who lost their lives fighting the fire in Matanzas.