Cuba: Explosion at Hotel Caribbean, Havana for Alleged Gas Leak

The director of the Isla Azul branch in Havana, Carlos Manuel Cabanes Rivero, told the press on Monday that an explosion occurred at the Hotel Caribbean in the Havana capital at 10:40 a.m. local time. 

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According to the official, a worker performing maintenance work was injured with burns and was taken to the hospital Mayor General Calixto García for medical attention. His life is not in danger. 

Cabanes said the explosion occurred on the fifth floor of the 38-room facility "when one of the workers performing maintenance work entered the room." There were no guests at the hotel, as it is being under renovation, the director said. 

Electricity was cut off and personnel were evacuated for security reasons. Damage was reported only in the room where the explosion occurred; the rest of the facility was not affected.

Explosion at the Caribbean hotel, in Prado and Colón Havana. The fire brigade, public health, the police as well as the municipal authorities are on site. Gas leak is presumed, but the causes are being investigated. One injured person is reported, receiving medical attention.

Specialists from the Cupet oil company and the Fire Protection Agency, among others, are investigating the causes, Cabanes said. 

"Gas leakage is presumed, but the causes" of the incident are being investigated, Unión Cubapetróleo said via Twitter.