Ominous Deja Vu Stirs in Venezuela's Shadows

The morning sun reluctantly forced me awake. "Great, the fan's broken. I should've taken that AC deal on installments," I grumbled, enveloped in oppressive silence.

I rose to investigate, flicking the switch to no avail. My initial thought was that my apartment building had another brief, isolated electrical outage. But the darkness outside told a different story – it seemed like the entire city was in blackness.

Pulling out my phone, I managed to get a flickering message from a Telegram news channel. Venezuela's communications minister announced an alleged electric sabotage affecting multiple states at 4:50 AM on August 30th. "More than an hour ago? How many states are we talking about?" I pondered. Blackouts were rare in Caracas, so this needed to be serious.

My phone was down to 10% battery, and I cursed myself for believing the phone explosion myth. My neighbor showed up at the door just as I was about to head outside for answers. "Here's a thermos of coffee. The whole country is without power, so this'll last a while," she said.

Seventeen states? Another spasm of reception informed me that it was actually all 24. My mind immediately flashed back to March 7, 2019, when we'd lived through a nationwide blackout that lasted five days.

During those days, water ran out, there was no fuel or transportation. Hyperinflation had rendered cash useless, electronic payment networks down, and US dollars scarce. Food scarcity became the norm, and though there was inspiring solidarity, opportunists roamed, charging an arm and a leg to recharge phones.

The traumatic memories sent my anxiety soaring, but this time it was 6 AM, not 6 PM. People weren't rushing out of work as night fell. So later in the day, I stepped out for a walk.

Unlike 2019, the streets were bustling with buses, cars, and motorbikes. Kids were on vacation from school, thankfully. Most businesses were open, using generators or rechargeable lightbulbs. Card payment terminals ran on batteries, and digital payments worked intermittently. US dollars were now much more common.

Buying fruit, bread, and canned food with a $20 bill, I was reminded of that bizarre Venezuelan tradition of tucking away a "lucky bill" for prosperity in the new year. Still, the underlying issue remained: no one had electricity.

As I drove around in search of a place to charge my phone and get some news, I realized the broadcasting silence was eerie. Both private and government networks were surprisingly mute on the matter, a stark contrast to the chaos of 2019.

Some stations claimed the police were forcing people to circulate, possibly to avoid large gatherings or instill a sense of normalcy. The peace and calm reported across the nation were almost surreal, given the circumstances. It could have been a meticulously crafted propaganda effort.

High-ranking officials finally spoke hours after power was restored, promising swift justice for the perpetrators of the attack on the electric grid. However, the cause remained undisclosed, like the state of the aged and neglected infrastructure. In recent years, power cuts had become common but never announced, leaving residents in the dark.

Despite the improved response from authorities compared to 2019, the government's communications policy showed no signs of change. They continued to use euphemisms and delays, lulling citizens with the empty promise of future announcements.

However, the resilience of the Venezuelan people and their economic dynamics had evolved since then. Solidarity networks and concern for neighbors remained strong. And response times had clearly improved, with the blackout lasting only half a day.

Maybe we've all learned something, even under these far-from-ideal circumstances. Compared to the five-day ordeal of 2019, a 12-hour blackout hardly seemed insurmountable!

Jessica Dos Santos is a university professor, journalist, and writer based in Venezuela. Her work is featured in RT, Épale CCS magazine, and Investig'Action, among others. She is the author of the book "Caracas en Alpargatas" (2018). She won the Aníbal Nazoa Journalism Prize in 2014 and received honorable mentions in the Simón Bolívar National Journalism prize in 2016 and 2018.

The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Venezuelanalysis editorial staff.

Translated by Venezuelanalysis.

The communications minister announced an alleged electric sabotage affecting all 24 states of Venezuela at 4:50 AM on August 30th, as shown by a message from a Telegram news channel.
During the 2019 nationwide blackout, water ran out, there was no fuel or transportation, hyperinflation had rendered cash useless, electronic payment networks were down, and food scarcity became the norm.
Some stations claimed the police were forcing people to circulate during the blackout, possibly to avoid large gatherings or instill a sense of normalcy.
Despite the improved response from authorities compared to 2019, the government's communications policy showed no signs of change, using euphemisms and delays to lull citizens with the empty promise of future announcements regarding the cause of the blackout.