SOUTH AMERICA
In the Dark
A massive power failure left millions of people without electricity across all of Argentina and Uruguay, and parts of Paraguay, Chile, and Southern Brazil on Sunday.
Argentina’s power system collapsed around 7 a.m. local time, bringing down Uruguay’s system with it, Quartz reported. By evening, Argentina had restored power to 98 percent of the country, according to the Associated Press.
It was not yet clear what caused the system failure, though heavy rains pounding Buenos Aires and the surrounding area are suspected to have played a role. But the sheer numbers of people affected were staggering – including 44 million people in Argentina alone.
Voters in several Argentine provinces that were holding elections for governor had to cast their ballots by the light of their phone screens.
The outages are blamed on generous subsidies and other policies that have left the utilities with losses and distribution infrastructure in disrepair.
That’s an ill President Mauricio Macri has targeted with gradual austerity measures. The subsidies originated with former president and rival Cristina FernĆ”ndez – who is running for vice president on the opposing ticket in the October elections.
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