In Pictures

Photos: Deadly fire at Cuba’s main oil terminal in Matanzas

Huge columns of fire rose into the sky and thick black smoke has bellowed for days, darkening the sky as far away as Havana.

Flames and smoke rise from the Matanzas Supertanker Base as firefighters work to quell the blaze which began during a thunderstorm in Matanzas, Cuba — Cuban authorities say lightning struck a crude oil storage tank at the base, sparking a fire that sparked four explosions [Ismael Francisco/AP Photo]

Cubans awoke to massive blackouts Tuesday morning with 40 percent of the country’s main fuel storage facility destroyed by what officials said was the worst fire in its history.

Reuters witnesses reported the raging flames that ravaged a four-tank segment of the Matanzas supertanker port since Friday had died down and the towering plumes of thick black smoke still streaming from the area appeared tinted gray.

Matanzas is Cuba’s largest port for receiving crude oil and fuel imports. Cuban heavy crude, as well as fuel oil and diesel stored in Matanzas, are mainly used to generate electricity on the island.

The communist-run country, under heavy US sanctions, is all but bankrupt. Frequent blackouts and shortages of petrol and other commodities already had created a tense situation with scattered local protests following last summer’s historic unrest in July.

Lightning struck one fuel storage tank Friday evening. The fire spread to a second by Sunday and around dawn Monday enveloped a third tank that firefighters had tried to cool. It later engulfed the four-tank area, accompanied by huge explosions and despite efforts by local firefighters supported by more than 100 Mexican and Venezuelan reinforcements.

Officials have not said how much fuel has been lost in the fire which destroyed all four tanks.

The first tank that caught fire was at 50 percent capacity and contained nearly 25,000cu metres (883,000cu feet) of fuel. The second tank was full.

Authorities stated that no oil had contaminated the nearby Matanzas Bay. Still, they warned residents as far away as Havana to wear face masks and avoid acid rain due to the massive plume of smoke the fire has generated.

Officials have warned that the cloud contains sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and other poisonous substances. The plumes can be seen from Havana, more than 100 kilometres (65 miles) away.

Firefighters move in a truck inside the Matanzas supertanker base to douse a fire that started during a thunderstorm, in Matanzas, Cuba [Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo]

One firefighter died and 14 went missing on Saturday when the second tank blew up, authorities said on Tuesday, correcting an earlier figure of 16 missing.

Mario Sabines, governor of the Matanzas province, said the flames spread like an “Olympic torch” from one tank to the next, turning each into a “caldron”.

On Tuesday morning, more helicopters joined the effort to put out the fire, along with a fireboat sent by Mexico.

Daniel Chavez, deputy chief of the forces trying to douse the flames, told local media, “We see a change in smoke colour … It seems to be a different day and we are taking advantage of the morning when the sun is not so strong because it is a factor that has an impact.”

The governments of Mexico and Venezuela have sent special teams to help extinguish the fire, with water cannon, planes and helicopters fighting the fire from several directions as military constructions specialists erected barriers to contain oil spills.

The blaze came as Cuba struggles through a deep economic crisis and faces frequent power outages amid a sweltering summer, issues that helped unleashed unprecedented antigovernment protests last year. Officials have not provided a preliminary estimate of damages.

Helicopters hauling water fly over the Matanzas Supertanker Base, as firefighters and specialists work to quell the blaze which began during a thunderstorm in Matanzas, Cuba — Helicopters scrambled Monday to contain a days-old blaze that felled a third tank at a fuel depot in Cuba, as the search continued for 16 missing firefighters. [Ismael Francisco/AP Photo]

A lightning strikes through smoke from fuel storage tanks that exploded near Cuba's supertanker port in Matanzas, Cuba, — A lightning strikes through smoke from fuel storage tanks that exploded near Cuba's supertanker port in Matanzas, Cuba. [Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters]

Black smoke from oil tanks on fire is seen near the Matanzas bay, Cuba — The toxic smoke from the fire can be seen in the capital, Havana, more than 100 kilometres (62 miles) away. [Yamil Lage/AFP]

View of an oil tank on fire in Matanzas, Cuba — The fire on the outskirts of Matanzas, a city of 140,000 people, east of Havana, broke out late Friday after lightning struck one of eight tanks at the depot. [Yamil Lage/AFP]

Workers of the Cuba Oil Union, known by the Spanish acronym CUPET, watch a huge rising plume of smoke from the Matanzas Supertanker Base, as firefighters work to quell a blaze which began during a thunderstorm the night before, in Matazanas, Cuba — After the first tank caught fire late Friday, the blaze spread to a second tank by the early hours of Saturday, engulfing four by Tuesday. [Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo]

Two men sleep next to a palm tree while others take a bath near a huge plume of smoke rising from the Matanzas Supertanker Base as firefighters work to quell the blaze which began during a thunderstorm in Matanzas, Cuba — Two men sleep next to a palm tree while others take a bath near the huge plume of smoke rising from the Matanzas Supertanker Base as firefighters work to quell the blaze which began during a thunderstorm in Matanzas, Cuba. [Ismael Francisco/AP Photo]

Flames rise from a massive fire at a fuel depot sparked by a lightning strike in Matanzas, Cuba — Cuban army helicopters scrambled to contain a blaze that felled a third tank at a fuel depot on Monday and a fourth Tuesday after burning for days, as the search continued for 16 missing firefighters. [Yamil Lage/AFP]

Members of the Cuban Red Cross prepare to be transported to the Matanzas Supertanker Base, where firefighters work to quell a blaze which began during a thunderstorm the night before, in Matazanas, Cuba — Firefighters had been battling to prevent the third tank from catching fire, dousing it with water to keep it cool, but ultimately to no avail. [Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo]

A man types on his cellphone near a huge plume of smoke rising from the Matanzas Supertanker Base as firefighters work to quell the blaze which began during a thunderstorm in Matanzas, Cuba — The depot, built in the 1980s and modernised several times, supplies the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, the largest in the communist nation which had to be shut down. [Ismael Francisco/AP Photo]