A power failure in Lanzarote, Spain knocked desalination plants offline, threatening the local drinking water supply.
Here's what to know
According to Canarian Weekly, on Oct. 3, roughly 51,700 customers lost power after a 5:44 a.m. incident involving the 66-kilovolt network at the Mácher substation in Tías. By 5:48 a.m., another failure at the San Bartolomé and Punta Grande substations had caused a generation loss, pushing the total number affected to about 73,600.
About 39,000 customers still lacked electricity at 6:47 a.m., even as crews worked to restore power. Playa Blanca, which is supplied through Fuerteventura, was lucky enough to avoid outages.
The grid failure also caused desalination plants serving Lanzarote and La Graciosa to shut down, interrupting drinking-water output. Some areas were further warned of reduced pressure and temporary cutoffs.
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More background
Even after electricity began returning, water output could not rebound immediately because the desalination plants had to complete startup and stabilization procedures before ramping back toward normal production.
While the plants were being restored to operation, water crews adjusted the distribution system to stretch existing reserves and manage stored supplies.
Because the blackout was disrupting essential services, the Canary Islands Government activated a PLATECA pre-alert for Lanzarote at 7:15 a.m. Officials did not immediately identify the original cause of the electrical failure as work continued on the power and water systems.
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What can be done?
Authorities used the emergency declaration to coordinate with essential-service operators and monitor the outage's impact. In the meantime, residents and businesses were urged to conserve water and avoid nonessential use until production recovered.
For households thinking about resilience after an outage like this, adding battery storage to a solar setup is one of the best ways to protect your home during outages, save money on energy, and go off-grid. Homeowners can explore EnergySage for information about home battery storage options, including competitive installation estimates.
Tools that make solar shopping easier can also help people prepare for disruptions. With EnergySage's solar map, homeowners can see the average cost of a home solar panel system by state, along with details on solar panel incentives for each state. Together, those resources can help homeowners get the best price for rooftop solar panels and access available incentives. With EnergySage's help, the average person can save up to $10,000 on solar purchases and installations.
Where can I learn more?
Related coverage has documented other major outages.
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