Spain restores 92 pct of power after major blackout

MADRID, April 29 (KUNA) -- Spain restored 92 percent of its electricity demand by 5:00 a.m. Tuesday, following a historic full blackout that affected Spain, Portugal, and parts of France, Spanish state TV reported.
The outage began at 12:33 p.m. Monday, caused by a sudden loss of about 60 percent of the consumed power leading to a collapse of the Iberian Peninsula's grid, according to Spain's electricity operator, Red Electrica.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in an official statement after the second meeting of Spain's National Security Council that the cause was "the sudden disappearance of 15 gigawatts of power from the grid for five seconds," equivalent to 60 percent of the energy being consumed at the time.
Sanchez added that investigations are ongoing, and no cause is ruled out, noting that King Felipe VI is set to chair the third meeting of the National Security Council later today.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska declared a national emergency in seven autonomous regions due to the blackout's impact, noting that Spain's government is now coordinating recovery efforts.
Electricity gradually returned, starting from northern and southern border areas, aided by connections with France and Morocco, meanwhile, passenger trains in Madrid and Catalonia are resuming operations at 50 percent and 60 percent capacity.
In Portugal, power restoration began after 8:45 p.m. Monday, although the outage had caused major traffic and transport disruptions.
In Spain, hundreds of trains stopped mid-route, metro networks plunged into darkness, and thousands needed rescue from stalled elevators.
Major train stations provided temporary shelter for stranded citizens, while airports and hospitals operated at reduced capacity using backup generators. (end) hnd.ahm