MADRID, 7 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, has asked this Saturday to evaluate the environmental impact that could be caused by the column of smoke emitted by the fire that occurred this Friday night due to lightning in the fuel tanks in the city of Matanzas, about 80 kilometers east of Havana.

Díaz-Canel has insisted on the importance of carrying out a preliminary evaluation at the meeting of strategies to stop said incident, according to the newspaper ‘Cuba Debate’.

In addition, the Cuban president has indicated that work must be done to evacuate as much fuel as possible, the aforementioned newspaper reported.

Likewise, the president has thanked the material help offered by several Latin American governments and Russia. “We express deep gratitude to the governments of Mexico, Venezuela, Russia, Nicaragua, Argentina and Chile, which have promptly offered solidary material aid in the face of this complex situation,” he said in a publication on the social network Twitter.

Also, in the same message, Díaz-Canel thanked the “technical advice” provided by the United States.

Hours earlier, the president reported that he had ordered the search for the disappeared, care for the relatives and international aid, after traveling to Matanzas and visiting the victims.

The authorities urged the evacuation of nearby towns due to the danger of toxic gases. The latest balance indicates that at least 77 people have been injured and 17 firefighters are missing.

The Comandante Faustino Pérez provincial hospital has confirmed at least 77 injuries from the fire, ten more than the estimates minutes before by the Minister of Public Health, José Ángel Portal, who had specified three critical injuries, three very serious, 12 serious, 20 less serious. and 29 minor, according to statements collected by the ‘Diario de Cuba’.