In the municipality of Mayarí, Holguín, more than 20,000 individuals are experiencing a power outage following the illegal siphoning of dielectric oil, which led to the complete breakdown of a distribution transformer. Mayarí faced a similar incident in April when over 400 customers in Guerrita went without power for 29 days due to a similar oil theft at a substation. Growing Trend of Oil TheftsAccording to official data, oil theft has become the most common crime against Holguín's electrical system. More than half of the 42 criminal incidents reported in the province by the end of July were related to oil theft from transformers. The authorities stressed that safeguarding substations located within or near communities also requires the cooperation of local residents as efforts continue to secure the equipment needed to restore power.