Power outage leads to crisis and chaos
- Patrick Trancu
- Apr 29
- 1 min read
Crisis and chaos are the most accurate summary of what happened yesterday in Spain and Portugal, where a widespread power outage effectively "shut down" both countries, affecting millions of people and paralyzing transport, hospitals, communications, and infrastructure.
At this point, the causes have yet to be clearly identified. But—as is often the case in crises—the trigger is ultimately irrelevant. What truly matters is the effect: in just a few minutes, everything stops working. Society comes to a halt. And as a Spanish TV journalist remarked, we are suddenly "back in the Middle Ages."
Those who just a few weeks ago mocked—or at least chuckled at—the European Union’s recommendation to prepare a 72-hour survival kit may now want to reconsider.
The real question is not “Why did it happen?” but “What would happen here?” Are we ready? Is our political and administrative system prepared? And are we—individually, as families, as businesses?
Asking questions is the smartest thing we can do, starting with the simplest one: “What would I do if...?”
Just as it would be wise to start preparing—seriously—for unprecedented events... while there's still time.
