Large sections of the Hotel Saratoga in Havana were ripped away after a large blast
A powerful explosion badly damaged a hotel in the Cuban capital on Friday and officials reported at least eight people had died.
It said at least eight people had been killed and that search and rescue efforts were under way for people possible trapped. Photographer Michel Figueroa said he had been walking past the hotel when “the explosion threw me to the ground, and my head still hurts … Everything was very fast.” Mayiee Perez said she had rushed to the scene after receiving a call from her husband, Daniel Serra, who works at a foreign exchange shop inside the hotel. She said he told her, “I am fine, I am fine. They got us out,” but had been unable to reach him since.