Massive power outages that caused chaos in Spain and Portugal have begun to be fixed, but many people have no electricity on Monday.
As the electricity went out, the communication network was interrupted, traffic lights stopped working, lifts were in trouble, and millions were left in the dark.
Although electricity has been restored to many areas, most Spanish trains are still out of service.
Spanish grid operator Red Eléctrica said on X that work to restore power in the Spanish region is underway, adding that by Monday, about 60% of the electricity had been restored.
After nearly nine hours of power outages, Madrid's power has largely recovered. According to local media reports, cheers erupted in a community as electricity recovered.
Prime Minister Sanchez urges peace
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called on citizens to remain calm.
“It will be a long night. We are working tirelessly to restore our strength,” he wrote on X.
He added: “Thanks to all the workers who are committed to returning to normalcy.”
Earlier, among the addresses that were not all publicly seen due to interruptions, he urged people to make short and urgent calls only and use them only if strictly necessary.
He said the government is in contact with the royal family, parliamentary parties, European partners and NATO.
He wrote on X: “We will work hard all night. Full of professionalism and commitment. Just like Spain always does this in these situations.”
Sanchez added that power has been achieved in the northern and southern regions of the country due to cooperation with authorities in France and Morocco. He thanked all countries for their unity.
European Council: There is currently no sign of cyber attack
Transport Minister Óscar Puente said on X that some medium and long-distance trains in Spain are still out of service and they will not resume until Tuesday.
The reason for the power outage has not been announced yet.
European Council President António Costa wrote on X that there is currently no indication that the cyber attack is the cause.
He added: “Grid operators in both countries are working hard to find reasons and restore power supply.”
The Madrid Open tennis match was suspended.
“The lack of power has caused the operational collapse of infrastructure nationwide, including in Caja Magica,” the organizers wrote.
“The organization is in touch with the competent authorities and has no choice but to pause/cancel all sports activities to ensure the safety of the players, fans and personnel of CAJA Magica.”
The impact on the competition is still being evaluated, organizers said.
The Spanish Ministry of Health said the hospital was not seriously hit due to backup of backup generators.
Portugal, parts of France are also affected
Broadcasting firm RTP reported that in neighboring Portugal, power outages occurred in several areas.
Operator Feda said on X that the Canaries and Balearic Islands in Spain were not affected, while the power outage in neighboring Andorra lasted only a few seconds.
Before the restoration of electricity, part of the Basque region of France was also short.
A spokeswoman in Brussels said the European Commission is “understanding the root causes and impacts of the situation” with Spanish and Portuguese authorities.
“There are protocols that restore the functionality of the system,” she added.
