Massive power outage in Spain and Portugal leaves thousands stranded and millions without light [View all]

Source: AP

By RENATA BRITO, BARRY HATTON and Joseph Wilson
Updated 10:33 PM CDT, April 28, 2025

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — An unprecedented blackout brought much of Spain and Portugal to a standstill Monday, stranding thousands of train passengers and leaving millions of people without phone and internet coverage and access to cash from ATMs across the Iberian Peninsula.

The sudden crash of the power grid also left authorities searching for its cause. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez addressed the nation and said that almost 11 hours after the nation ground to a halt, government experts were still trying to determine what happened.

“We have never had a complete collapse of the system,” Sánchez said, before detailing that at 12:33 p.m. on Monday Spain’s power grid lost 15 gigawatts, the equivalent of 60% of its national demand, in a matter of five seconds.

Spanish power distributor Red Eléctrica’s head of operations Eduardo Prieto said the event was “exceptional and extraordinary.”



Read more: https://apnews.com/article/spain-portugal-power-outage-electricity-b0c5fbca49b8422248c4f933e20303b3