Overflowing Trash: Holguín's Children's Park Faces Growing Waste Problem

A burgeoning pile of trash is becoming an unsightly feature across the street from a children's park in the city of Holguín. This Saturday, the Facebook page Holguín Memories sounded the alarm by posting photos of cardboard boxes, branches, plastic bags, and rubble accumulating on the wet street with the park's red fence visible in the background.

"If swift action isn't taken, we'll find ourselves with yet another garbage dump, this time in the heart of the city, right in front of the Children's Park. The garbage issue is spiraling out of control," warned the post, sparking a wave of outrage among frustrated locals.

Comments indicate that the situation has been worsening for days. One local pointed a finger at a nearby business: "That trash heap has been growing for quite some time... who's to blame? Ask the bar owner across the street; they're the ones dumping all the garbage there."

Another resident painted a broader picture: "I live on Pepe Torres Street, and the waste compactor truck hasn't passed by for over a week. There is now a trash heap every 25 meters on both sides of the street, and the community services have given up."

Sanitary Concerns Amid Rising Temperatures

Health worries dominate much of the response, especially with summer approaching. "We're going to face a surge of diseases with so much trash piling up in the summer heat," expressed one concerned citizen.

Another individual reported that the issue extends even to areas meant for children: "At the Mario Pozo 8 children's center, where kids are present, a trash pile has formed on one side, and this country couldn't care less if the children fall ill."

Many comments highlight the core of the issue: the lack of regular waste collection. "Trash is like water; it has to go somewhere. If it's not collected, it's inevitably going to form a dump," summarized one resident.

Criticism was also directed at the authorities: "Where are those responsible for this? Are they blind, or are they too scared to step up?"

Recurring Patterns of Urban Decay

This emerging waste hotspot is part of a broader trend of rapid deterioration in Holguín, documented over recent months. Earlier this month, El Mambisito Park in the Valle de Mayabe was described as a ruin, with missing roofs and out-of-service attractions.

A previously viral video showed a similar uncontrolled dump in Reparto Zayas. Back in May, the site of the former Los Caballitos Children's Park, demolished between 2023 and 2024 without a replacement plan, was reported as an improvised dump.

The historic Holguín-Gibara railway station, one of Cuba's oldest, has also become a dumping ground for waste and debris.

Challenges in Waste Management

The Holguín Municipal Services Company has acknowledged shortages in trucks, spare parts, fuel, and manpower, yet has not provided concrete solutions.

Nationally, waste collection dropped to 24.9 million cubic meters in 2023, and in Havana, only 44 out of 106 garbage trucks were operational as of February.

The health risks are particularly severe during the hotter months. In October and November of 2025, Holguín reported cases of dengue — serotype four confirmed by PCR — and chikungunya across nearly all its 14 municipalities, with accumulated trash identified as a factor favoring Aedes aegypti mosquito breeding.

In January, the provincial broadcaster Radio Angulo warned that burning waste releases dioxins, furans, and carbon monoxide, while each resident produces about 1.5 kg of waste daily, with only 35% of the province's trash being utilized.

Once considered one of Cuba's cleanest cities, Holguín now finds its residents demanding answers from authorities who have yet to respond. If left unaddressed, the situation threatens to transform the city center into another open-air landfill.