A sweeping, unexplained power outage swept across Spain and Portugal on Monday that disabled traffic lights, disrupted roads, train lines and airports, and left tens of millions facing the prospect of a night without electricity.
Portugal’s grid operator, Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), reported that the power supply across the Iberian Peninsula and parts of France went down shortly after midday. Spain’s national grid operator warned that full restoration could take several hours, leaving families and businesses at risk of facing the evening in total darkness.
The precise cause of the blackout has not been determined yet, but the effects were immediate and severe. Transportation hubs closed down, and officials in both countries—home to a combined population of roughly 60 million—rushed to organize emergency meetings to coordinate their response.
Officials cautioned that many businesses and households might remain without power well into the night. Portugal’s grid operator described the restoration of power as a “complex operation,” adding, “At the moment it is impossible to predict when the situation will be normalized.”
In Madrid, traffic quickly descended into chaos when streetlights failed. “I was driving and suddenly there was no traffic lights… It was a bit of a jungle,” Luis Ibáñez Jiménez told CNN. “I saw a massive bus coming, and I had to accelerate a lot to go past it.”
Madrid’s mayor, José Luis Martinez Almeida, urged residents to stay off the roads and reserve emergency calls for critical situations. Later, emergency services pressed the national government to declare a state of emergency, and Madrid’s regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, requested military assistance.
Portugal’s Prime Minister Luis Montenegro suggested the issue originated beyond his country's borders, stating that although the exact cause remained unclear, it “did not originate in Portugal” and that "everything indicates" the problem began in Spain.
Flights at key airports across the region were abruptly delayed or canceled, forcing travelers to scramble for alternatives. Online flight trackers showed that regular departures came to an unexpected halt shortly after midday. Portugal’s national airline, TAP Air Portugal, advised passengers to stay away from the airport until further notice.
Ellie Kenny, a traveler at Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport, described scenes of hundreds of people standing in darkened queues without air conditioning or running water. Shops were only taking cash payments, she told CNN.
Train services across Spain were also brought to a halt. Subway tunnels were plunged into darkness, with videos on social media showing stranded subway cars sitting motionless on Madrid’s platforms, where metro service was suspended and station entrances were cordoned off.
While energy supplies have gradually begun to return in some areas, Spanish energy officials warned that the full restoration could be slow. “The experience of other similar events that have taken place in other countries indicates to us that this process—the total reestablishment of the electrical supply—will take several hours," Eduardo Prieto, system operations director at Red Eléctrica, told La Sexta. “We could be talking about six to 10 hours, if everything goes well.
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