Havana blackouts empty streets as Cubans seek way out

Havana's streets have grown darker and emptier after a seven-month US fuel embargo and rolling power cuts, as residents face deep uncertainty over Cuba's future.

Old Havana, once known for music, nightlife and crowds of tourists, is now described as largely deserted at night. The Malecon seafront has so little traffic that pedestrians can cross more easily than before, while some cobbled streets are left without power.

Manuel Sanchez Angeira, a 50-year-old man with mouth cancer, said he searches through garbage for food or anything he can use or sell. He said he has no home and no family, and described street violence as a daily fear.

Small groups of protesters have banged aluminium pans to show anger over the blackouts, moving quickly to avoid police. During the day, the biggest crowds are at banks, cheap bakeries and outside the Spanish consulate, where hundreds wait with papers to leave Cuba.

The scale of departures is unclear. Cuba's official population was more than 11 million in 2012. Demographer Juan Carlos Albizu-Campos estimates it may now be as low as eight million.

Tourism has also thinned. Some restaurants remain open with generators and dollar-priced menus, but several historic venues in Old Havana are closed. El Floridita, associated with Ernest Hemingway, is shut behind metal shutters, and Sloppy Joe's is also closed despite an earlier restoration.

Old Havana's restoration was shaped by historian Eusebio Leal, who helped secure UNESCO heritage status and promoted tourism as a source of revenue. Some restored buildings are again deteriorating, while residents question spending on hotels that now stand empty.

Irina Aguirre, who reads tarot cards near Plaza San Francisco, said tourists once asked her about love and wealth. She said Cubans now ask when the US fuel blockade will end and whether life will improve.