Spain, Portugal, and Parts of Southwestern France Hit by Massive Blackout
The cause of the blackout is still under investigation
A massive power blackout struck Spain, Portugal, and parts of southwestern France on Monday, April 28, 2025, affecting millions of people and causing widespread disruption.
The outage began around 12:30 PM local time and led to the shutdown of public transport, including trains and metro systems, halted flights with major airports like Madrid-Barajas and Lisbon Humberto Delgado closing temporarily, and caused traffic chaos due to non-functioning traffic lights.
Mobile phone and internet networks were also down, forcing many residents to rely on radio for news updates.
Hospitals in the affected areas experienced significant challenges, with some forced to cancel surgeries and rely on backup generators, though water supply issues were reported in some facilities.
The blackout also impacted cultural events, notably suspending play at the Madrid Open tennis tournament due to power loss affecting scoreboards and broadcast cameras.
The cause of the blackout is still under investigation. Initial reports suggest it was triggered by a rare atmospheric phenomenon involving extreme temperature fluctuations in Spain’s interior, rather than a cyberattack, which Portuguese authorities have ruled out.
Restoration efforts are ongoing, with power gradually being restored in northern and southern Spain, but the full recovery could take several hours to up to a week according to grid operators.
The governments of Spain and Portugal convened emergency meetings to manage the crisis, and France experienced only partial outages with power largely restored quickly.
The incident highlights vulnerabilities in the European power infrastructure despite normal weather and demand conditions.
