On Wednesday afternoon, June 19, Ecuador was surprised by a general blackout “Nationally”Causing chaos across the country.

The outage began at 3:17 p.m. (10:17 p.m. Paris time) and power was gradually restored. “95% (3,500 MW) restored” Three hours later nationally, on the social network X, the Minister of Energy, Roberto Luque, confirmed with supporting graphics.

This is “Milacro Sore Transmission Line Failure [qui] A “darkening” of the national system »He clarified. “The lack of investment in these electricity systems and networks over the years, we are experiencing the consequences today”Minister explained.

Evacuation of the metropolises

The outage particularly surprised residents of Kyoto, the capital city of three million people.

“National Cut Affects Whole Capital”, X commented on its mayor, Pabel Muñoz. “To even affect the power of the autonomous Quito Metro, this incident must be significant.”He was nervous saying that he had ordered “Activation of all response teams of the municipality of Quito to facilitate movement, prevent accidents at major intersections and manage public spaces”.

The outage forced the evacuation of thousands of passengers from the capital’s metro, sometimes on the tracks but apparently peacefully, according to videos broadcast by media. Amid the chaos, municipal officials were rushed to road junctions with traffic lights down. Local news media also noted that A “Road Chaos” At congested junctions.

In the capital, the Internet was temporarily cut off, Agence France-Presse (AFP) noted, and the cellphone network was intermittently disrupted, according to press reports.

According to AFP, after an hour of the blackout, power was gradually restored from one neighborhood to another.

Energy crisis

The same road devastation was seen in the major port city of Guayaquil on the Pacific coast, where many people were trapped in broken elevators in large office and residential buildings, according to an AFP reporter. Yet in Guayaquil, the agency responsible for drinking water management invited people “Take Action and Book” While waiting for the water to return to normal. Trams in the southern city of Cuenca also stopped running.

Minister Roberto Luque did not specify the extent of the breach or the potential victims the incident may have caused. “This event is a true reflection of the energy crisis we are experiencing, the lack of investment in generation (what happened in April), the lack of investment in transmission (what happened today) and in distribution »He simply commented after the breakup.

In April, Ecuador experienced a planned power outage of up to thirteen hours due to prolonged drought, their minimal hydroelectric reservoirs and dilapidated infrastructure, according to officials. In May, the rains again brought the cutting to a halt.