“A painful stage ends and for others it begins, but it is fair to recognize the work carried out by the Fire Department and all the people who participated in the rescue actions at the Saratoga Hotel, risking their lives and without rest,” said the president from his Twitter account.

That tourist facility suffered a strong explosion when a tanker car with liquefied gas was serving its facilities. This fact caused the demolition of the front and side facades of the first floors of the building and the damage to other adjacent buildings.

Firefighters, members of the Red Cross and rescue specialists worked uninterruptedly for a week, until they found the last person reported missing the day before.

The damaged hotel left a balance of 46 deceased and 99 injured.

The Cuban head of state, Miguel Díaz-Canel, decreed official mourning from 06:00 this day until 00:00, local time, tomorrow, “due to the deep pain of our people in the face of the unfortunate accident,” he said in an official statement.

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