Flash floods kill two, topple three buildings in Havana

Heavy rains and flash floods hit Cuba's capital Havana, leaving two dead after causing three buildings to collapse and partially damaging 24 others.

The two victims included an 81-year-old resident of the city's Old Havana district, who drowned, and a 24-year-old man who was electrocuted by fallen electrical cables, state daily Granma reported Thursday, citing local officials.

The storms, accompanied by hail and gusts, also caused blackouts in parts of the city on Wednesday afternoon, cutting off water supply, which was reestablished by nighttime, officials said.

Photos on the daily's website showed cars immersed up to the tires wading through the inundated streets.

More than five decades of a trade embargo against Cuba has choked off the country's access to basic building materials, meaning many of the capital's older constructions lack maintenance and have aging infrastructure. More than a third of the city's housing is considered to be in regular or bad condition.

Cuba's National Institute of Meteorology (INSMET) said the heavy rains were caused by a line of thunderstorms that formed rapidly in the Florida Straits, ahead of a cold front, which was expected to arrive Thursday, along with continuing rains over the western region. Endite