Out of Gas: Cubans Cook With Charcoal and Wood as Blockade Bites

Millions of Cubans have been left without cooking gas as the United States oil blockade, intensified under the second Trump administration, continues to strangle the island nation’s fuel supplies. Residents across Cuba — particularly in Havana and Santiago de Cuba — are resorting to charcoal and firewood to cook their meals, marking a return to pre-industrial methods unseen since the Special Period of the 1990s. The crisis represents the most severe energy shortage Cuba has faced in decades, with blackouts lasting up to 22 hours per day, hospitals suspending surgeries, schools closed, and water systems disrupted.

Context: How Cuba Ran Out of Fuel

Cuba has completely run out of diesel and fuel oil. Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy announced on May 14, 2026, that the country has “absolutely no fuel (oil), and absolutely no diesel” and “no reserves,” according to The Guardian. The national grid, he said, is operating in a “critical” state, relying entirely on domestic crude oil, natural gas, and renewable energy after the fuel from a Russian tanker that arrived in April ran out.

The U.S. oil blockade began in earnest with Executive Order 14380 on January 29-30, 2026, declaring a national emergency and authorizing tariffs on any country supplying oil to Cuba. This followed the U.S. intervention in Venezuela in early January, which led to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and the severing of Venezuelan oil shipments that had been supplying Cuba with 26,000 to 35,000 barrels per day. Mexico, Cuba’s other major supplier, also halted shipments due to U.S. tariff threats, despite President Claudia Sheinbaum’s stated desire to provide humanitarian aid, as PolitiFact reported.

Since December 2025, only one oil tanker has reached Cuba — the Russian-flagged Anatoly Kolodkin, which delivered 100,000 tonnes of crude oil in late March. The U.S. allowed it through for “humanitarian reasons.”

A Humanitarian Catastrophe Unfolds

The human toll of the crisis is staggering. Blackouts now last 20 to 22 hours per day in many parts of Havana and other cities. Cuba experienced three nationwide blackouts in March 2026 alone, including one lasting 29.5 hours on March 19 and another total collapse on March 22. Protests erupted across Havana in mid-May, with residents taking to the streets shouting “turn on the lights,” banging pots and pans, and setting fire to piles of rubbish.

Rodolfo Alonso, a resident of the Havana neighbourhood of Playa, told Reuters: “We started banging pots to see if they would give us just three hours of electricity. That’s all we want.”

The health care system is on the verge of collapse. According to UN News, over 96,000 surgeries are backlogged in Cuba’s health system, including 11,000 for children, while the National Immunization Programme has been delayed for thousands of infants. Roughly one million people are dependent on water trucking, a service severely constrained by the lack of diesel.

Schools and universities have been closed across the country. Garbage has accumulated in Havana and other cities due to the lack of fuel for trash trucks, creating public health hazards. The UN World Food Programme’s relief efforts, already stretched by the devastation of Hurricane Melissa in October 2025, have been severely hampered.

Cooking With Charcoal and Firewood

President Miguel Díaz-Canel, speaking during the 2026 National Defense Day in late March, emphasized the urgent need to ensure the availability of cooking materials, ranging from charcoal to firewood, as Cuba Headlines reported. The government’s strategy of reverting to traditional cooking methods underscores the complete breakdown of the island’s energy infrastructure.

Across the country, families are foraging for wood and buying charcoal on the black market to prepare their meals. The situation evokes memories of the Special Period of the 1990s, when Cuba endured a similar energy collapse following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Analysis: Who Is Responsible?

The question of responsibility for the crisis has become deeply contested. Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed in a video message to the Cuban people on May 20 that “the reason you are forced to survive 22 hours a day without electricity is not due to an oil ‘blockade’ by the U.S.,” blaming instead decades of Cuban government mismanagement and corruption.

PolitiFact rated Rubio’s claim as “Half True,” noting that while the Cuban government’s failure to invest in grid maintenance and diversify energy sources contributed to pre-existing problems, the U.S. oil blockade has “exacerbated the problem” and pushed the situation to unprecedented severity. William LeoGrande, an American University specialist in Latin American politics, told PolitiFact: “The length of the blackouts has gotten worse since the oil embargo was in place, so that is clearly, unquestionably, a major part of the problem. To claim blackouts are solely the (Cuban) government’s fault is simply disingenuous.”

United Nations human rights experts have characterized the U.S. actions as “energy starvation.” The UN called the blockade unlawful, saying it obstructed “the Cuban people’s right to development while undermining their rights to food, education, health and water and sanitation.”

Geopolitical Dimensions and What Comes Next

The crisis is unfolding against a backdrop of broader U.S. assertiveness. Trump has stated he expects to have “the honour of taking Cuba,” and U.S. surveillance flights near and over the island have increased significantly. On May 20, U.S. federal prosecutors indicted former Cuban President Raúl Castro for the 1996 shootdown of Brothers to the Rescue aircraft, marking the sharpest escalation in U.S.-Cuba tensions in years, as Al Jazeera reported.

Cuba has released a civil defense guide titled “The Family Guide for Protection Against Military Aggression,” and President Díaz-Canel has warned that any U.S. military action would lead to a “bloodbath.”

Meanwhile, the U.S. has offered $100 million in aid to Cuba in exchange for political reforms. Trump stated on Truth Social that “Cuba is asking for help, and we are going to talk.” However, the indictment of Raúl Castro has raised tensions significantly, and the ongoing U.S.-Israel war with Iran has raised global oil prices, further complicating Cuba’s efforts to secure alternative fuel supplies.

Cuba has installed 1,300 megawatts of solar power over the past two years, but much of that capacity is lost to grid instability and a lack of battery storage. The UN has warned of potential “collapse” and is seeking $68 million in additional funding for its humanitarian Action Plan.

As the crisis deepens, millions of Cubans continue to cook with charcoal and wood, waiting to see whether diplomacy or confrontation will define the next chapter of their nation’s relationship with the United States.