Inside 12 hours of chaos in Spain during an unprecedented power blackout

From being unable to withdraw money or fill up with petrol, to those hit by train and flight cancellations, the people of Barcelona describe the impact of Spain’s mass power cut

Alex Lopez was one of dozens of people waiting in a long line at the ATM inside Hospital Clínic, a medical centres in Barcelona.

“Hospitals are one of the few places where the power grid is still working, and we want to get cash just in case,” Mr Lopez said. “I had a doctor's appointment, so we took advantage of it.”

The lights were still working in the building, with generators keeping the power flowing.

This was one of Spain’s major cities paralysed after a power outage brought vast areas of the country and its neighbour Portugal to a standstill, with power operators scrambling to restore power to millions of homes and businesses.

People wait for the bus to the airport in Barcelona (Alicia Fàbregas)

Whole cities were cut off with mobile networks, Wi-Fi, ATMs and card machines inoperative during the disruption, which began around 12.30pm on Monday. The was so grave that Spain’s government declared a state of emergency.

In Portugal, a country of 10.6 million people, the outage hit the capital, Lisbon, and surrounding areas, as well as northern and southern parts of the country. Rumours of extreme weather, over-reliance on solar energy and even possible cyber attacks were raised as the cause, with nothing being confirmed by the Spanish authorities.

Back in Barcelona, people gathered at the doors to use the hospital's open Wi-Fi network, with chaos unfolding outside after the power went out around midday.

The metro stopped running, 600 people had to be rescued from lifts across the region of Catalonia and traffic lights stopped working. Cars were also unable to fill up with petrol, with pumps down or payments not being able to go through.

“I'm stuck because I can't refuel… total chaos,” said a taxi driver who preferred to remain anonymous. Others asked where they could refuel, desperate after having driven around several stations without luck, but no one had any answers.

Supermarkets were also hit hard.

“We have been trying to sell what we can at a fixed price, because most of the things we have are sold by weight, and we cannot weigh them because the machines are not working,” said Natalia Albert, a shop assistant at the Escofet Oliver butcher's and grocery store, adding that much of the refrigerated food would probably be thrown away.

Groups of people could be seen gathering around radios on the street, seeking information about the situation. Many others stood outside darkened establishments, keeping each other company with little else to do.

In Barcelona city centre, long lines formed at the bus stop for the airport.

Will McGriff, a tourist from Glasgow staying in a small town outside Barcelona, had to take three trains to attempt to catch his flight.

“It took me three hours to get there [Barcelona],” McGriff said. “I sat on the train for an hour until they told me it wasn't running. Then you also had to walk around trying to figure out how to get there, because there was no Google Maps or anything [as phone signal was disrupted].”

With 10 minutes to go before his flight and still waiting in line for the bus, Mr McGriff said he would have to find another way to get home, one of the millions affected across the country during 12 hours of chaos.