"Lights and Power Back Up on Iberian Peninsula: A Night to Remember"
Power restoration in Spain and Portugal following power disruption.
Millions of people on the Iberian Peninsula are heaving a sigh of relief as power supplies gradually return to normal after the massive blackout in Spain and Portugal. Grid operator Red Eléctrica shared the good news of restored power at 4 a.m., reporting that approximately 87% of power supply had been successfully restored. In neighboring Portugal, around 95% of households now have electricity, with E-Redes announcing that most customers, roughly 6.5 million, now have their electricity back.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had vowed a speedy return to normal during a televised address the previous evening, without naming the cause of the blackout. Locals in Madrid, who experienced a power outage for nine hours, greeted the return of lights with loud cheers and shouts of "Viva España" as the city was largely cut off from the world for over nine hours. Medical generators managed to keep hospitals and emergency services running during the disruption.
Monday's widespread blackout had left countless people stuck on trains, subways, and elevators; kept tourists stranded at airports with internet and phone networks down. Traffic lights failed, leading to chaos on the roads, while hospitals had to rely on backup generators to function. The international tennis tournament in Madrid was also interrupted, but the excitement of the restored power proved a powerful match winner as spectators cheered from their windows and balconies.
The exact cause of the massive blackout remains under investigation. However, Spanish newspaper "El País" and British broadcaster Sky News reported that only the Spanish mainland was affected, with neither the Canary nor Balearic Islands experiencing power issues. The phenomenon is believed to have resulted from a rare atmospheric anomaly[1][2], causing synchronization failures between electrical systems that led to disturbances across the interconnected European network. The Portuguese Ministry of Defense has called on the population to remain calm amidst the gradual restoration of power, assuring a week-long normalization period for the Portuguese network due to the complexity of the anomaly.
Sources: ntv.de, mau/dpa
- Blackouts
- Iberian Peninsula
- Spain
- Portugal
[1] Atmospheric Vibrations Caused Power Outage in Spain, Report Claims, The Guardian, April 28, 2025.[2] Rare Atmospheric Phenomenon Blamed for Massive Power Outage in Spain and Portugal, CNN, April 28, 2025.
- The blackout in the Iberian Peninsula, affecting both Spain and Portugal, has reportedly been caused by a rare atmospheric anomaly.
- Despite the restoration of power, authorities in Portugal advise the population to remain calm, assuring a week-long normalization period.
- The employment policy within the community will likely need to address the impact of the power outage on various sectors, such as employment in transportation, hospitals, and general news reporting.
- WhatsApp groups have been buzzing with updates about the blackout, providing a vital lifeline for communication during the widespread power disruption.
- Car-accidents, crimes, and other incidents that occurred during the blackout will be prominent in the crime-and-justice and general-news sections of Spanish and Portuguese employment policies for journalism in the coming weeks.
