Buenos Aires Plunged Into Chaos by Major Blackout

A major power failure struck Buenos Aires, Argentina, leaving over 622,000 customers without electricity. The blackout occurred at 12:40pm on Wednesday due to a high-voltage power line failure. The outage followed an earlier disruption and hit during a heat wave, with temperatures reaching 107.6 Fahrenheit. Increased electricity usage strained the city's power supply. This led to shutdowns of several substations, according to Edesur, the electricity company working to restore service.

The blackout caused disruption in the city. Subway services were suspended on all lines, 50 stoplights went dark, and hundreds of traffic cops had to manage the ensuing "chaos." By later that afternoon, most train lines were operational again, except for two. People were trapped in elevators and pedestrians struggled to cross busy streets such as Avenida 9 de Julio.

Power outages are frequent in Argentina during peak demands, especially in the summer. Years of low electricity prices under past administrations led to underinvestment in the sector. However, utility rates have surged under President Javier Milei, who is seeking to attract foreign investment to upgrade the energy infrastructure. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)