Massive Blackout Shuts Down Spain and Portugal, Power Restoration Underway

A massive blackout swept across Spain and Portugal today, bringing much of the Iberian Peninsula to a halt. Trains, subways, ATMs, traffic lights, and even phone services were disrupted as power was knocked out in major cities like Madrid and Lisbon.

Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez attributed the widespread outage to a strong oscillation in the European power grid, though the exact cause is still under investigation. Spain’s national power company warned it could take up to 10 hours to fully restore electricity across the region.

Thanks to assistance from neighboring nations like France and Morocco, voltage has begun to return in some areas. The Portuguese Cyber Security Center has confirmed there is no evidence of a cyberattack at this time.

Officials noted that blackouts of this magnitude are extremely rare in the region, making today’s disruption a significant event. Efforts are continuing to stabilize the grid and fully restore services to millions affected.

Explore: NBCPalmSprings.com, where we are connecting the Valley.