BARCELONA (CAPE) - A power outage brought large parts of Spain and Portugal to a standstill Monday, halting trains, cutting phone service and shutting down traffic lights and ATMs for millions of people across the Iberian Peninsula.
Spanish electricity distributor Red Eléctrica refused to speculate on the cause, saying it could take six to 10 hours for the full restoration of electricity. Head of operations Eduardo Prieto told reporters that this was an unprecedented event, describing it as "exceptional and extraordinary".
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the outage was due to "strong oscillations" in the European network, but the cause was still being investigated. He asked the public to refrain from speculation and urged people to call emergency services only if it is really necessary.
It was the second major power outage in Europe in less than six weeks, following the fire that knocked Britain's Heathrow Airport out of service on March 20, at a time when authorities across Europe are bracing for Russian-backed sabotage.
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