Cuba restores power to one-fifth of population after nationwide blackouts

People stand in the street at night as Cuba is hit by an island-wide blackout, in Havana, Cuba, October 18, 2024. REUTERS/Norlys Perez

HAVANA (Reuters) -Cuba's government said late on Saturday it had restored power to nearly one-fifth of the island's people after the national grid collapsed twice in 24 hours, plunging millions of people into darkness.

The unprecedented nationwide blackout is the latest blow in the nation of 10 million, already suffering from dramatic shortages of food, medicine and fuel.