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A massive, unexplained blackout struck Spain and Portugal earlier on Monday, plunging millions into darkness and throwing daily life into chaos.

In a matter of minutes, office buildings, hospitals, transportation networks and entire cities lost power without warning and hours later, the cause remains an unsettling mystery.

The first warning came from Euronews journalist Maria Muñoz in Spain, who alerted us to the power outage as buildings in Madrid were being evacuated.

Metro services ground to a halt, trapping commuters underground.

Hospitals switched to emergency generators. Offices emptied into the streets and traffic became gridlocked as traffic lights failed and drivers scrambled to get home.

Shortly after her first messages, communication with Maria was lost.

Whether she managed to reach her home or remained in the evacuated office is still unknown. Five hours later, no further contact has been established.

In neighbouring Portugal, the story mirrored Spain’s.

Euronews bureau chief Rita Afonso reported similar scenes of confusion and disruption from Lisbon.

Rita warned us that her phone battery was running low and that she would attempt to recharge her devices in her car, with no power at home. Before long, contact with her, too, was severed.

Throughout the afternoon, Euronews teams fought to piece together the developing situation.

Mobile phones, WhatsApp messages, and Teams calls became unreliable as communication networks strained under the outage.

Journalists managed to send videos and eyewitness accounts from the field — vivid images of empty metros, chaotic traffic jams, and people wandering in confusion — before many of them, too, went silent.

In both Spain and Portugal, authorities have yet to offer an explanation for the blackout.

The lack of information has only fuelled anxiety across the Iberian Peninsula, as people wait in the dark for answers.

For now, the question lingers: what plunged two entire nations into darkness and when will the lights come back on?