Blackouts latest: 'Everything is in chaos' - power outages hit large parts of Spain and Portugal

Sky News

28-04-2025

Are you affected? We want to hear from you
Are you in Spain or Portugal and affected by the power outage? We want to hear from you
Get in touch via WhatsApp here or share your experiences in the comments box. By sending us your video footage, photographs or audio you agree we can publish, broadcast and edit the material.
What we know has been affected
A cut to power is affecting huge swathes of Spain and Portugal, with major cities including Barcelona, Lisbon, Madrid, Porto and Seville affected.
Parts of France's Basque region was briefly caught by the outage.
Here's what we know has been affected: Transport, including trains, metros and airports - with traffic lights also down;
Internet and mobile coverage;
Lighting in homes, businesses and other buildings, though backup generators are in place in many;
ATMs and card payments, as well as most till systems;
Lifts in buildings are stuck;
Electric car chargers and fuel pumps are also down;
A significant quantity of water pumps, meaning some homes have no access to drinking water.
'Utterly bizarre': Madrid resident tells of confusion as blackout hit
The moment the power cut hit has been described as "utterly bizarre" by a resident of Madrid.
Simon Hunter told Sky News that he first noticed the outage when he went to charge his phone, watch and headphones at midday.
"Through talking to other friends it was clear that this was a general cut... I realised something was up when my colleague in Barcelona said we are all without power at the moment," he told Sky's Jayne Secker.
"Obviously it wasn't just a local thing, it wasn't a citywide thing, it wasn't a regional thing, it was a nationwide thing."
Speaking on the situation he finds himself in, Hunter said he's "very cut off" due to the outage, and the water in his building has also stopped.
"I'm on the 13th floor of my apartment, there's no way I'm going down to the street because I would have to walk all the way back up those stairs again," he said.
Watch the full interview here:
Restoring power could take up to 10 hours, Spain's operator says
Spain's grid operator, Red Electrica, says it could take up to 10 hours to restore power.
Restoration depends on multiple factors, it says, but simulations indicate it could take between six and 10 hours.
It also said it would not speculate as to the cause of the incident.
EU Commission in talks with Spain and Portugal
The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, has said it is in contact with national authorities in Spain, Portugal and the European Union's power grid body, ENTSO-e.
Discussions are taking place between officials to understand the underlying cause behind this mass outage and its impact.
Commuters pile on to crowded bus in Lisbon
These latest pictures are coming to us from Lisbon, which has also been severely affected by the blackouts.
People can be seen piling into a bus after the metro service stopped running.
Similar to the situation we've been telling you about in Madrid, traffic lights have also stopped working.
Your pictures: Shops in darkness and chaos on the roads
You've been sending in images of how today's outage has been affecting you.
A reminder you can get in touch via WhatsApp here or share your experiences in the comments box.
By sending us your video footage, photographs or audio you agree we can publish, broadcast and edit the material.
Fans leave Madrid Open in darkness
As well as travel being severely affected by the power outage, tennis fans have been left disappointed after play was suspended at the Madrid Open.
Issues arose when scoreboards were affected and a camera lost power directly above the court, stuck in the players' eyeline (see 12.32pm post).
Take a look at the pictures below showing supporters at the Madrid Open in darkness.
What's going on at the major airports
Airports across Spain and Portugal have been heavily affected by today's outage.
Sky News has reached out to all three airports for comment.
Lisbon
We've received several reports from Lisbon airport saying that power was lost - but that it appears to have come back.
We've had no official update from the airport itself, however.
Traveller Charlotte told us: "It's horrendous... the airport has done nothing to help anyone and has now just put an announcement out to say all passengers must leave the airport and contact their airline provider."
Madrid and Barcelona
Aena runs international airports across Spain.
A statement from the company, which looks after Barajas Airport, the busiest in the country, says: "Due to the power outage, some incidents are occurring at the airports. Contingency generators are active. Please check with your airline, as there may be disruptions to access and ground transportation."
It's a similar story in Barcelona, where people reported an outage. According to Wade, who's been speaking to us, power was off for around 40 minutes before being restored.
"Power is on again now but still no gate screens on," he told us.
In pictures: Metro evacuated in Madrid
We brought you reports of Madrid's underground being evacuated after the power outage (see 12.12pm post).
These pictures show the entrance to Legazpi metro station being sealed off and workers explaining the closure to members of the public.
Drivers in Spain urged not to use their cars unless necessary
Spanish citizens have been urged not to use their cars unless necessary.
The warning has come from the country's traffic authority DGT.
Earlier, we told you about reports of traffic jams on the road in Madrid with traffic lights not working (see 12.12pm post).