Death toll rises to 35 in Havana hotel explosion

The death toll has risen to 35 after an explosion at a luxury hotel in Havana.

The incident occurred Friday morning at the Hotel Saratoga when an apparent gas leak erupted as the hotel, which dates back to the 1800s, as it was preparing to reopen after being closed for two years.

Members of the Cuban Red Cross take a break after working in the rubble at the site of a deadly explosion that destroyed the five-star Hotel Saratoga in Old Havana, Cuba, Monday, May 9, 2022. (Ramon Espinosa/)

A pregnant woman and four children were among the victims.

The Ministry of Health later said that 20 injured people are still hospitalized.

A member of a rescue team carries a stretcher after recovering a body from the rubble and loading it into a coroner´s vehicle, at the site of a deadly explosion that destroyed the five-star Hotel Saratoga in Old Havana, Cuba, Monday, May 9, 2022. (Ramon Espinosa/)

The explosion sent an outer wall into the streets below, only a block from the El Capitolio, or the National Capitol Building. The historic Marti Theater was also damaged. The Calvary Baptist Church said on Facebook that their building suffered “significant structural damage, with several collapsed or cracked walls and columns (and) the ceiling partially collapsed,” but no one in the church was hurt.

The five-star 96-room hotel is located in the Old Havana neighborhood.

However, the cause of the explosion is still underway.

With News Wire Services