Rocio Vilaplana, a dentist in southeast Spain, closed the suture during oral surgery in the early hours of Monday afternoon, when the lights went out.
“Everything started beating,” Ms. Vilaplana said.
Her backup generator started, emergency lights flashed in the operating room, and the 36-year-old dentist tried to keep calm. She thought, “Let’s close it right.”
Dr. Vilaplana completed the exquisite procedure, but it would be the beginning of a day of wear and general chaos throughout Spain and Portugal, as a whole day of power outages brought tens of millions of lives. People spend the night at the train station, crowded under blankets, trapped in apartments without water or work elevators, staring at their sudden useless cell phones, wondering what was going on.
On Tuesday, due to the power outage still under investigation, many people reflected the anxiety of not only lacking electricity, but also no cell phone services, internet access or anything other than cash.
In Murcia, a city in southeast Spain, the word on the lips of many residents on Tuesday morning was “locura” – insanity.
“The worst thing is the lack of communication,” said María José Egea, 71, who spent a tense night in her seventh-floor apartment with the elevator not available. She said neighbors came to check her out, although there was little good information, and there were rumors about the cause of the power outage.
“People come and tell me nonsense,” she said. “Everyone has a theory.”
In Madrid, the Spanish capital, residents of the Arganzuela community were filtered to the streets on Monday, confused about what was going on. Some people stare at their unconnected phones. Others gather outside health centers, shops and bars to try to gather information.
A small group of people gathered at a car repair shop on Martín DeVargas Street where owner Fernando Palacio opened the door to the car he was driving and played a news broadcast on the radio, the only reliable source of information throughout the day.
It reminded Mr. Palacio of a coup attempt in Spain in 1981, he said Tuesday morning, “everyone is stuck on the radio.”
Naturally, people flock to stores that are still buying batteries, cooking charcoal, toilet paper and other essentials. When night falls, some stores in cities such as Murcia are empty.
“We're actually scared,” said María Cantero, 41, a 41-year-old restaurant server at Archena, about 15 miles outside of Murcia. She ran to the store to buy formula for her 5-month-old daughter and candles. When night falls, the power still disappears, and she feels uneasy.
In Peniche, Portugal, José Boto, about 60 miles north of Lisbon, a 69-year-old pensioner, had a tough day.
When he was told that there was a power outage and could only pay in cash, he was standing in a supermarket, queuing with chicken (his lunch). “I had to leave the chicken behind,” he said.
By Tuesday morning, life is returning to its pace. Ms. Cantero drove her daughter Lucía to the doctor in Murcia. Traffic lights work again and police deployed to the intersection to guide traffic disappear.
The Spanish capital has not yet returned to its moist wild self. Many residents seem to be staying at home. The school is open, although there are few regular courses.
María Del Carmen Sánchez, a caregiver at Cervantes High School in Lavapiés, Madrid, said “only 5% of the students” appeared on Tuesday.
She said that despite the confusion, I think everything is going well. People were very patient, although at first a little nervous and concerned. ”
For others, the interruption of the previous day lingers.
Anthony SaaS, 24, a student from Zgharta, Lebanon, was cancelled on Monday after he returned home from his train to Jaén. He spent a sleepless night at the train station, covered with a red cross blanket, where he was still on Tuesday morning, holding a plastic bag with items waiting for his rescheduled train to go home.
“It's been a tough night,” Mr Sars said. This was his first visit to Cordoba, adding: “I don't even know if I'll be back.”
Many people across the area prepared for a few days of excavation as authorities continued to look for the cause of the blackout.
Dr. Vilaplana put on her scrub and mask again Tuesday morning at the dental clinic in Murcia. She plans to work up to 13 hours to try to fit all canceled patients and participate in new emergencies.
Over the next few days, she said: “It's going to be totally crazy.”
Samuel Granados Reports from Cordoba, Spain. Tiago Carrasco Report from Peniche, Portugal.
