Massive Blackout in Spain and Portugal Nears Resolution as Investigation Continues
Power is nearly fully restored in Spain and Portugal after a massive blackout, leaving many questions about its cause.
Such widespread electric failure has little precedent on the Iberian Peninsula or in Europe.
Spain and Portugal focus on cause of huge blackout with power almost fully restored
Boston Herald·3d·Mostly ReliableThis source is generally reliable but sometimes includes opinion, propaganda, or minor inaccuracies.Leans RightThis outlet slightly leans right.
While long-lasting power outages such as the one in Spain and Portugal are relatively uncommon, having a few basic supplies on hand can make a substantial difference in how safely and comfortably they can be endured.
Power outages across Spain and Portugal affected millions. How to prepare for a major blackout
Chicago Tribune·3d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.While long-lasting power outages such as the one in Spain and Portugal are relatively uncommon, having a few basic supplies on hand can make a substantial difference in how safely and comfortably they can be endured.
Power outages across Spain and Portugal affected millions. How to prepare for a major blackout
Associated Press·3d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
Such widespread electric failure has little precedent on the Iberian Peninsula or in Europe.
Spain’s power supply is almost fully restored after severe blackout
ABC News·3d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
However, on Tuesday, Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET said that it had not detected any "unusual meteorological or atmospheric phenomena" Monday and no sudden temperature fluctuations were recorded at their weather stations.
Cause of massive European power outage unclear as full service returns
FOX News·3d·Mostly ReliableThis source is generally reliable but sometimes includes opinion, propaganda, or minor inaccuracies.Leans RightThis outlet slightly leans right.
The outage was baffling, and a day later, remains unexplained.
A day without power: What 12 hours of darkness looked like in Spain and Portugal
CNN·3d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
Power failures of this scale are rare in Europe, and when the outage hit around noon Monday (6 a.m. ET), airports were disabled and shops and offices were plunged into darkness.
The lights are back on in Spain and Portugal, but nobody knows why they went out
NBC News·3d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
While such widespread failures of power grids are rare, having a plan for how to react to such an event — and how to prepare ahead of time — can make a major difference in staying safe and managing the disruption if the lights go out.
Power Outages across Spain and Portugal Affected Millions. How to Prepare for a Major Blackout
Newsmax·3d·Mixed ReliableThis source has a mixed track record—sometimes accurate but also prone to bias, sensationalism, or incomplete reporting.RightThis outlet favors right-wing views.
The massive blackout brought Spain and Portugal to an abrupt standstill on Monday.
Spain and Portugal begin recovering from a massive blackout. Here's what to know
NPR·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.The restoration of the power supply is currently underway, with officials citing a rare atmospheric phenomenon as the cause.
Europe’s Devastating Power Outage in Photos
Wired·4d·Mostly ReliableThis source is generally reliable but sometimes includes opinion, propaganda, or minor inaccuracies.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
The day the lights went out, the day that the trains and much else stopped working, the day the 21st century seemed to head to the exit, along with passengers evacuated from Madrid's metro.
News Wrap: Massive power outage disrupts daily life in Spain and Portugal
PBS NewsHour·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
The blackout – blamed by the Portuguese operator on extreme temperature variations – left the two countries without trains, metros, traffic lights, ATMs, phone connections and internet access.
Power begins to return to Spain and Portugal after unprecedented blackout
The Guardian·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
The blackout shut down train lines, stores, ATMs, and traffic lights, causing chaotic scenes across the affected areas.
Massive power outage hits Spain, Portugal
World News Group·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans RightThis outlet slightly leans right.
Officials did not say what caused the outages, but several denied any foul play.
Power outage hits Spain and Portugal: What happened and what was affected?
Al Jazeera·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
Traffic was thrown into chaos across the Iberian Peninsula, flights were grounded, and some hospitals canceled routine procedures as authorities raced to restore power.
5 Things to Know About the Spain and Portugal Blackouts
Epoch Times·4d·Mixed ReliableThis source has a mixed track record—sometimes accurate but also prone to bias, sensationalism, or incomplete reporting.RightThis outlet favors right-wing views.
The massive power cut that stranded Mr Hughes triggered chaos across Spain and Portugal, and also impacted Andorra and parts of France, from about midday local time (10:00 GMT).
How power outage in Spain and Portugal unfolded - minute-by-minute
BBC News·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
The outage hit across Spain and Portugal, including their capitals, Madrid and Lisbon.
Major Power Outage in Spain and Portugal Knocks Out Subway Networks, Traffic Lights and ATMs
CBN·4d·Mostly ReliableThis source is generally reliable but sometimes includes opinion, propaganda, or minor inaccuracies.RightThis outlet favors right-wing views.
But in the interim, residents are experiencing traffic delays as traffic lights stopped functioning, the shutdown of nearby grocery stores, and other disruptions.
What to Know About Power Outage That Hit Spain and Portugal
TIME Magazine·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
Confusion is widespread, as it remains unknown when the situation will be normalized.
El Pais·4d·Mostly ReliableThis source is generally reliable but sometimes includes opinion, propaganda, or minor inaccuracies.Leans LeftThis outlet slightly leans left.
The cause of the outage was not immediately known but the blackout shut down the subway system in Madrid and caused traffic stop lights to go dark across Spain.
New York Sun·4d·Mixed ReliableThis source has a mixed track record—sometimes accurate but also prone to bias, sensationalism, or incomplete reporting.RightThis outlet favors right-wing views.
The impacts are widespread and pervasive; in major cities like Madrid, trains are not running, airports are unable to operate, and businesses and schools have closed.
Massive power outage in Spain, Portugal leaves millions in dark
ARS Technica·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.The blackout halted operations at train stations, airports, businesses, and major buildings across affected areas.
Photos show the impact of a massive blackout across Spain, Portugal, and parts of France
Business Insider·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
It is rare to have such a widespread outage on the peninsula.
Spain and Portugal report massive power outages, including in their capitals
CBS News·4d·ReliableThis source consistently reports facts with minimal bias, demonstrating high-quality journalism and accuracy.CenterThis outlet is balanced or reflects centrist views.
Summary
On Monday, a significant blackout severely impacted Spain, Portugal, and parts of southern France, disrupting millions of lives. The outage started around 12:30 PM CEST and created chaos in public transport and airports. By Tuesday morning, over 99% of power demand had been restored in Spain, with Portugal's grid also back online. Schools and offices have reopened, although investigations into the blackout's cause continue without firm conclusions. Authorities, including Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, are scrutinizing the incident, which was unprecedented for the region, while meteorological agencies ruled out significant atmospheric issues or cyberattacks.
Perspectives
Power was almost fully restored to Spain and Portugal on Tuesday, although many questions remained about what caused one of Europe’s most severe blackouts that grounded flights, paralyzed metro systems, disrupted mobile communications and shut down ATMs across the Iberian Peninsula.
By 7 a.m., more than 99% of energy demand in Spain had been restored, with life returning to normal as schools and offices reopened, traffic eased, and public transport resumed after significant delays.
Spanish authorities, while still investigating the blackout, confirmed it was the most severe outage ever experienced in the region, losing 15 gigawatts—equivalent to 60% of Spain's national demand—in just five seconds, raising questions about the integrity of the electrical grid.
FAQs
No FAQs available for this story.
History
- 4d
- 4d
- 4d
- 4d
- 4d