The building that was the seat of the Provincial Archive of Santiago de Cuba, and popularly known as the old Vivac, suffered a fire on Thursday afternoon that was put out by firefighters. Images captured by 14ymedio They reflect the great smoke that came out of the building located at 131 Aguilera Street, corner of Padre Pico, in the very heart of the city.
Users in social networks quickly registered the sinister that until now its proportions are not known. The Archive “is burning”, reported Internet user Joel Pérez through his account Facebook. Through a video, Pérez recalled that the building is located very close to Parque Céspedes.
“The Fire Department puts out the fire in the former Bivouac”, public the official journalist Santiago Romero Chang without giving more details and only highlighted that the Historical Archive is “governed by the Office of the City Conservator.”
The incident in this building occurs precisely on the day that the official wall of the Santiago de Cuba Provincial Historical Archive, now located on Patria Avenue, reports on the work carried out by the staff during “the week of Risk Reduction and Protection in fire case”.
For several years, the old Bivouac was the repository of the documents of the municipal government in the development of its functions in the different historical periods through which it has passed. Currently, according to sources consulted by this newspaper, it was being “constructively rehabilitated”.
The building was the place where they took Fidel Castro after arresting him after the assault on the Moncada barracks in 1953. Its construction dates back to the mid-19th century when it was inaugurated as the Royal Prison of the Spanish Government in the region.
In addition to Castro and his brother Raúl, Perucho Figueredo and Antonio Guiteras, Frank País García, Vilma Espín, Haydée Santamaría, Melba Hernández and Juan Almeida Bosque passed through their pro-independence cells.
The building was declared a National Monument in 1998. A year later it was inaugurated as a Historical Archive and they housed documents from the 18th and 19th centuries.
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