A massive power cut hit Buenos Aires City and its suburbs on Wednesday afternoon, leaving almost 800,000 users without power.
The blackout once again exposed the fragility of Argentina’s electricity grid in the midst of a suffocating heat wave. Wide sectors of the capital and Buenos Aires Province neighbourhoods were left without electricity with the heat index topping 36 degrees at a critical time of day marked by the intensive use of air-conditioners and domestic appliances.
Argentina’s electricity grid often struggles with demand during the summer season with brief power outages across small regions relatively common. However, at the peak of Wednesday’s power cut almost 800,000 users were affected.
The impact was immediate: traffic lights out of action, shops obliged to close down and neighbours seeking refuge from the heat without ventilation or cold water.
Half an hour later, national government sources and Edenor informed that approximately half the supply had been restored.
“Around 123,000 Edesur users are still affected because the system is interconnected. Edenor has already restored service to 400,000 users with a further 400,000 still to go but that is being resolved,” the Energy Department reported at around 3.30pm.
According to the official version of events, the power cut originated between 2.30 and 2.45pm when four high-tension lines of 220 kV linked to the Morón substation, operated by Edenor, broke down. This failure triggered the sudden loss of some 3,000 megawatts of power for the system.
"They are Edenor’s high-tension lines. It’s a problem for the distributor,” explained government sources.
The power cut had an immediate impact at various points of the city with neighbourhoods like Palermo, Belgrano, Recoleta, Colegiales, Villa Devoto, Villa Pueyrredón, Chacarita, Caballito, Saavedra, Villa Ortúzar and Villa Urquiza left without supply for several minutes, causing traffic complications with traffic lights out of action.
A similar situation in Greater Buenos Aires in places like Vicente López, Munro, Florida, San Martín and Tigre was reported with prolonged power cuts amid the heat wave. In many cases, the lack of electricity was combined with problems supplying water, making daily life difficult.
– TIMES/PERFIL
Comments