An earthquake struck eastern Cuba on Sunday, shaking buildings in the island's second-largest city, Santiago de Cuba, and surrounding rural areas. The quake, measuring 6.8, struck near the municipality of Bartolome Maso in the Granma province on Cuba's southeastern coast, the same place where former Cuban leader Fidel Castro held his office during the Cuban Revolution.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel gave information on X, writing, there has been a landslide, houses and power lines have been damaged. We have started assessing the damage… the most important thing is to save lives.

I did not feel such a strong earthquake

Reuters spoke to several residents in the area who said they had never felt such a powerful earthquake in their lives. "Houses and buildings shook violently and dishes, glasses and vases were knocked off shelves," they said. "We have felt earthquakes in the past, but never like this," Santiago resident Griselda Fernandez said by telephone.

Many homes and buildings in the area are old and susceptible to earthquake damage. State-run media published photos of terracotta roofs and facades of concrete block homes that have now collapsed. Many photos show broken roofs, walls, windows, as well as damaged public infrastructure.

The island is struggling to recover from the storm

The quake struck an island still struggling to recover from the storm. Much of Cuba's eastern shore was still recovering from a direct hit by Hurricane Oscar in October. Last week, Cuba's national grid collapsed after Hurricane Rafael struck the western shore of the island, leaving 10 million people without power.

Blackouts lasting hours to months are common across much of eastern Cuba, making damage reports slow and communications difficult.