Tragic Day in Artemisa: Three Children Die from Lightning Strike and Drowning

The province of Artemisa was shaken by heartbreaking events on Friday, as three young lives were lost in separate incidents in the municipality of Bauta. Around 5:30 p.m. on June 7th, a lightning strike before the rains claimed the lives of two teenagers, aged 13 and 16, who were playing soccer outdoors in the Pita neighborhood of Urban Popular Council 2. The provincial newspaper El Artemiseño reported that both teenagers died at the scene.

Additionally, that same day, the tragic drowning of a three-year-old girl occurred at a residence in Playa Baracoa. The young girl, who hailed from the municipality of Caimito, was with her family along the coastline at the time of the incident, as noted by the news outlet. Local authorities also confirmed a third incident in La Ernestina, near Punta Brava, where a traffic accident involving a motorcycle and a Lada car resulted in one fatality and two injuries. The injured individuals were transported to the Calixto García Clinical-Surgical Hospital in Havana.

The tragic sequence of events left the Bauta community in a state of mourning and shock, just days before Cuba's Father's Day celebrations. In a similar vein, the province of Matanzas was devastated in April following the discovery of the lifeless body of an 8-year-old boy who had gone missing days earlier at Villa Los Pinos beach in Boca de Camarioca. Another young man reported missing at sea in April was also found deceased, causing great sorrow in his community.

These incidents echo other tragic events from 2022. In Matanzas, a two-year-old boy died after being electrocuted by a metal fence charged with electricity. Months later, another young boy was fatally electrocuted during a children's party in a park in Havana after coming into contact with a faulty sound equipment.