Chilean authorities announced on Wednesday that they had restored electricity to most homes, hours after a massive and rare blackout disrupted transport in the capital and prompted President Gabriel Boric to declare a state of emergency and impose a nationwide curfew. The power outage, the worst in over 15 years, struck on Tuesday afternoon, leaving millions without electricity and causing major chaos across the country.
Boric blamed private companies managing the grid for the failure, calling the situation “outrageous” and vowing accountability. By early Wednesday, 90% of power consumption had been restored, according to the national electricity operator.
The blackout affected a vast area from Arica in the north to Los Lagos in the south, impacting over 90% of Chile’s 20 million residents. In Santiago, thousands of commuters were evacuated from the metro as traffic lights went out, causing severe congestion. Many were forced to walk long distances under the hot sun to reach their homes, while businesses and offices shut down early.
Interior Minister Carolina Toha ruled out sabotage, stating that the failure was likely due to a technical issue within the system. Meanwhile, dramatic rescues unfolded, with firefighters saving people trapped in elevators and amusement park rides left suspended mid-air.
Hospitals and prisons operated on emergency generators as Boric surveyed the situation by helicopter. In the coastal city of Valparaiso, the blackout led to further transportation chaos and early shop closures.
Chile, known for having one of the most reliable power grids in South America, has not experienced an outage of this scale in nearly 15 years. The last major blackout occurred in 2010 when an 8.8-magnitude earthquake severely damaged a power plant, leaving hundreds of thousands in darkness. Authorities continue investigations into the cause of the latest failure to prevent future occurrences.
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