Power Blackout Hits Most of Chile

Nov. 8, 2003

Most of Chile lost power in a major blackout on Friday evening local time, snarling rush hour traffic in the capital.

The blackout began at about 7:20pm local time, and power was back in about a third of the affected areas at 9:00pm, National Electricity Superintendent Sergio Espejo told Television Nacional television network.

He said the country's central grid went down, but gave no other explanation for the blackout, which was total in a large part of central Chile.

He said all power should be back up by about 10:00pm local time.

"The system is coming up bit by bit and once everything is normalised we'll begin investigations," he said.

At 9:00pm, lights were gradually coming on in parts of the capital, home to 5-million people or one third of the country's population.

Television reports said power went out as far as Puerto Montt, a city some 1,000 kilometres south of Santiago, and in areas the same distance to the north.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s985098.htm