STUFF OF NIGHTMARES

Lightning Ignites Massive Blaze at Cuban Oil Facility, Injuring 77 and Leaving 17 Missing

Seventeen firefighters were also reported missing, and hundreds were forced to evacuate.

A lightning strike ignited a giant fire at an oil storage facility in Cuba on Saturday, prompting 1,300 people to flee, displacing an additional 600 and injuring dozens, according to the office of Cuba’s president. Plumes of black smoke were seen billowing above massive flames from the facility in pictures shared by the Cuban Energy Ministry, while military helicopters circled the area trying to put out the blaze. Others battling the fire, which spread from one huge oil tank Friday to a second one, include 17 missing firefighters, who became unaccounted for when the second tank exploded Saturday morning. As of Saturday afternoon, no deaths had been reported, but 77 people have been sent to the hospital, according to Cuban officials. The Cuban energy minister was also injured in the blaze, according to the president’s office. The facility’s close proximity to one of the country’s main power plants threatens to cause massive damage and potentially more blackouts.