power outages

Cuba is experiencing significant power outages affecting large parts of the country, including eastern regions and the capital, Havana. These blackouts are attributed to a severe fuel shortage, with the government stating that fuel reserves have been depleted. The situation has led to rare public protests in Havana. Meanwhile, in the UK, a survey indicates that millions of Britons are actively preparing for potential major disruptions, including power outages. This 'prepping' behavior involves stockpiling essentials like tinned goods, keeping cash at home, and ensuring access to emergency supplies such as battery-powered torches. The concerns driving these preparations are linked to ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, increasingly frequent extreme weather events, and warnings about the vulnerability of the UK's critical infrastructure to cyber-attacks and power grid failures. The Cuban blackouts highlight immediate energy infrastructure challenges, while the British public's preparations reflect broader anxieties about potential widespread service disruptions.