The causes for the unprecedented blackout that paralyzed everything in Spain And Portugal is looking for the authorities of the two countries while electricity has been almost completely restored.
Pictures of chaos from the blackout in Spain and Portugal made the world round. On the streets of Madrid neighborhoods, the restoration of electricity yesterday, Monday (28.04.2025), at night the enthusiastic screams and applause of the residents were often accompanied, after much of the day without electricity, but also without internet connection.
Shortly after 7:00 (Spain Time, 8:00 Time Greece) the electricity had been restored to a rate of more than 99% in mainland Spain, as announced by the managing company Ree.
In Portugal, the corresponding electricity management company pointed out that 6.2 million households were again in total of 6.5 million.
In the first moments of the Blackout there were scenes of chaos and queues began to form out of the Spanish cities supermarket. There were a few who filled their trolleys with water and toilet paper.
In addition to water and toilet paper, high sales recorded milk, canned and ready meals.
Electricity has been restored to Spanish cities.
During the 8-hour blackout,the Spaniards managed to buy up food and water in supermarkets and stock up on medicines and ammunition .
▪️Powerbank prices reached 12,500 euros#Spain#Portugal#blackoutEurope#Blackoutspain#France pic.twitter.com/Kupw1rt0n7
— Sam peter (@Sampeter510071) April 29, 2025
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez did not speculate on the causes of the blacketing that began yesterday at 12:33 (Spain, 13:33 Greek time).
“No theory has been ruled out,” Sanchez said yesterday during a press conference. “Never” in the past has again been such a “collapse” of the Spanish network, continued to clarify that “Suddenly 15 Gigavat” were lost by the Spanish network and this “within less than 5 seconds”.
“Fifteen Gigavat accounts for about 60% of demand” in electricity in Spain at that time of the day, Sanchez explained.
Luis Montenegro’s Portuguese counterpart, for his part, spoke of a “serious and unprecedented situation” whose causes are “probably in Spain”.
The gradual recovery of electricity was a good news for both countries, after a day full of difficulties: Closed subway, full of buses, blocked trains, communications that were carried out with great difficulty.
An excluded world that was impossible to travel to his destinations from Madrid overnight at the Real Stadium at the Movistar Arena.
He @Movistararenaesmakeshift shelter for travelers who were forced to spend the night in Madrid.
▪ “We couldn’t be with the doors closed.”
A Movistar Arena that this Tuesday, less than 24 hours later, will host a decisive Real Madrid-Olympiacos de Euroleague. pic.twitter.com/888Y2hlGZ7
– ElDesmarque (@eldesmarque) April 29, 2025
In Lisbon, “I was in the office when my computer suddenly went out,” the 34 -year -old worker in advertising Edgar Paraira said.
“At first we believed that there was a problem with the electricity of the building, but then we started calling our relatives and realized that there was a problem throughout the city and later that the same thing happens in Spain,” he added.
Portugal right now during the massive electricity outage that’s affecting Spain & Portugal.
Chaos in the traffic due to the disruption in traffic control lights and a run to fuel stations to fill up.
Black out started at 12:30 today. Root cause still not clear. pic.twitter.com/SPflbv7nQR
– Francisco Incarnation (@franciscojs_) April 28, 2025
In the center of Madrid, residents and tourists gathered outside the luxury hotels and banks, which still had electricity thanks to generators to exploit the Wi-Fi.
At the end of the day Thousands of people were forced to cross the city on foot, trying to return to their homes on foot. The city’s large roads were blocked by the huge tails of vehicles, in the middle of which the pedestrians progressed.
Corresponding scenes unfolded in Barcelona, where many residents took to the streets, with their mobiles in hand, looking for a connection.
Large tails were formed at bus stops. “Look, the tail makes a thousand turns,” said 39 -year -old Rosario Pena from Madrid. “I already took an hour and a half to get here and I don’t know how much I would need to get home …”.
A few hours later the lights began to light up in stores, an indication of the situation, at least in Madrid.
Only in the Spanish capital there were 286 companies to rescue people trapped in an elevator, according to regional authorities.
This morning Three trains remained blocked in Spain with passengers, According to Oscar Puenda Minister of Transport.
High -speed train traffic is expected to be restored this morning to many basic lines, with the connection between Madrid and Barcelona and that between Madrid and Valencia to be restored but problems will continue to others, Puende noted in X.
There were problems yesterday in the air traffic, mainly at the airports of Madrid, Barcelona and Lisbon, according to the Eurocontrol service.
But Sanchez stressed over the night that only 344 flights were canceled by the 6,000 scheduled for yesterday throughout the country.
“There are no public security problems. Our hospital system is operating normally, “the Spanish prime minister also assured yesterday calling on the Spaniards” to act with responsibility and cosmos “. And indeed, despite chaos and confusion, the atmosphere remained calm on the streets of Madrid.
Electricity was restored thanks to connections with France and Morocco while Hydroelectric stations and electric gas stations with natural gas have reopened throughout the country.
Such an extensive, long -term blanket is rare in Europe. In 2003, a problem in a line of hydroelectric power station between Italy and Switzerland caused a 12 -hour blackout on the Italian peninsula.
In 2006, the network overload in Germany took place in electricity in some parts of the country, as well as in France, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, and even Morocco, sinking in the dark about 10 million people for about an hour.