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Cuban migrants
trying to reach Florida ride a 1951 Chevrolet truck converted into
a boat using air-filled drums for flotation and a propeller attached
to the driveshaft. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Key Largo repatriated
12 Cuban migrants back to Cuba after the truck was sunk to prevent
a hazard to navigation. |
| Trucks in Cuba |  |
street sounds from santiago & havana
|
| Havana
and Santiago today have approximately 60,000 American
cars and trucks, all dating back to at least 1959. Cars are probably
the most valuable luxury items in Cuba, and the skills and resources
necessary to maintain a car are passed down from father to son through
the generations. Sometimes Russian made diesel engines are used to replace
worn out engines in American trucks. Without adequate oil, individual
mobility in Cuba has been replaced by communal transportation. |
On highways to and from Havana or Santiago hitchhikers wave money at
passing vehicles to solicit rides. Government officials in yellow garb
have the right to pull over nearly empty vehicles and trucks and fill
them with people who need a ride. It is not unusual to see an old Chevy
with four people in front and four in the back. Many trucks have been
converted to passenger transport vehicles by welding steps to the back
and installing bench seats covered with large canopies for shade. |
