A major power outage brought daily life to a halt across Portugal and Spain, causing widespread disruption. People found themselves trapped in elevators, stranded in trains, and cut off from mobile and internet networks. Hospitals postponed surgeries, and airports halted operations, painting a grim picture of chaos and confusion.
But amid the blackout’s panic, one Indian man living in Portugal with his Malaysian wife and children decided to turn the power failure into a magical family memory.
“No Internet Tonight” Sparked a Family Adventure
“When the whole region was in somewhat panic mode, my first thought was: my kids are not going to have internet tonight,” the man shared on Instagram. Instead of dwelling on the inconvenience, he whipped up tuna sandwiches and lit candles around the house. With electricity gone, cooking was off the table. So, the family played Bananagram by candlelight and leftover Christmas lights.
WATCH THE VIRAL VIDEO:
View this post on Instagram
“For the first time in a while, I didn’t have to ask anyone to turn off their devices. It was liberating,” he added.
Not stopping at board games, the family stepped out into the dark night for a walk. “We took a walk in the pitch black road, star gazed and caught fireflies. I might have enjoyed it a little more than I expected,” he wrote.
What Caused the Blackout?
Portugal’s energy provider, Redes Energeticas Nacionais (REN), blamed the outage on a rare atmospheric event. They reported that “extreme temperature variations in the interior of Spain” caused “anomalous oscillations in the very high voltage lines (400 kV), a phenomenon known as ‘induced atmospheric vibration’.”
However, Spain’s national weather agency, Aemet, disputed the claim. They stated that no unusual weather conditions or abrupt temperature changes were recorded on April 28 at any of their stations.
Despite the technical confusion over the blackout’s cause, one family found clarity in the dark—rediscovering connection, nature, and each other.
