Spain and Portugal hit by power outage sparking travel chaos

Three European countries have been plunged into darkness following a major power outage. Parts of Spain and Portugal - including Madrid and Lisbon - have been impacted. As per reports, Parts of France also appear to be affected, according to Spanish media reports, which said Seville, Barcelona and Valencia were hit by the outage. It has sparked chaos across Europe - with flights and trains cancelled.Spain's national railway operator, Renfe, has said that the power outage began at 11.30am BST. It describes the outage as being on a "national level".Videos on social media show people trapped in elevators and rail traffic at a standstill. 

A widespread power outage hit Spain, including Madrid, causing major disruptions to Madrid's metro system.

a "total blackout" at stations such as Avenida de América, where lights, electrical systems and cell phone coverage failed, triggering emergency lighting and necessitating… pic.twitter.com/fRxj4u4GRv

— T_CAS videos (@tecas2000) April 28, 2025

Passengers have taken to X (formerly Twitter) to share that they are stranded in Valencia airport in Spain as a result of the blackout.According to local media outlets in Spain, the main airport that serves Madrid had no power. Sports events have been impacted too, with the Madrid Open having been suspended.

DIRECTO | Paran los trenes en todo el país y se reduce a mínimos el tráfico aéreo https://t.co/F1jRL3PX5B pic.twitter.com/yiiStcuJr0

— EL PAÍS (@el_pais) April 28, 2025

In Portugal, a country of some 10.6 million people, the outage hit the capital, Lisbon, and surrounding areas, as well as northern and southern parts of the country. Portuguese distributor E-Redes said the outage was due to "a problem with the European electricity system", according to Portuguese newspaper Expresso. The company said it was compelled to cut power in specific areas to stabilise the network, according to Expresso.