MADRID, Spain.- This May 6, one year ago, the unfortunate explosion at the Hotel Saratoga in Havana, which cost the lives of 47 people (25 men and 22 women) and left almost a hundred wounded.
On that date, the hotel was undergoing renovation work for its reopening, so a large number of victims were hotel workers. Most of the dead were Cubans, except for one spanish tourist that he was on vacation on the island and at that moment was walking past the hotel facility. The dead also included four children and a pregnant woman. The last person hospitalized was discharged on June 28.
Although the Cuban authorities indicated that the explosion was due to a gas leak, so far there is no official report on the causes that led to the incident.
According to Alexis Acosta Silva, mayor of Old Havana, the explosion occurred when a liquefied gas bullet was being set up in the hotel, and caused the entire façade of the building, located in front of the Havana Capitol, one of the busiest areas of the capital, will fly through the air.
The explosion not only left the Saratoga semi-destroyed, mainly its façade and side, which were completely demolished to the third floor by the impact, but also caused havoc in 17 of the adjoining buildings, of which the Office of the Historian of the Havana City dealt with four of them: the Martí Theater, the National Capitol, the Yoruba Cultural Association and the El Calvario Baptist Church.
The Saratoga Hotel was built in 1880 and originally functioned as a warehouse. It was inaugurated as a hotel in 1933. In 2005 it underwent a major restoration carried out by the Office of the City Historian, on the occasion of the 486th anniversary of the founding of San Cristóbal de La Habana.
On that date, it reopened as a luxurious five-star hotel, with 96 rooms, three bars, two restaurants and a business center. Later, a spa and gym with high-end equipment were included.
International personalities such as the queen of pop, Madonna, the American singer Beyoncé and her husband, rapper Jay-Z, had stayed in the property.
