A major power outage hit most of Venezuela and darkened the
capital, prompting calls for calm as workers streamed through the
streets of Caracas after the transport system ground to a
halt.
Power was restored to some regions and parts of Caracas as
thousands of workers walked home through the crime infested city
after the metro train system shut down and traffic signals
failed.
Drivers pounded their vehicles' horns in the main avenues, which
were clogged with traffic as darkness fell.
The government said later that 60% of the country's energy supply
had been restored, but it gave confused accounts of the cause of
the blackout.
The energy ministry blamed a forest fire which had burnt through
a cable and the interior minister cited problems at a major
hydro-electric dam.
Officials said full power services would be restored within hours
across the oil-exporting nation.
"It happened at the moment of peak demand," said Hipolito
Izquierdo, head of the country's electricity authority. "The line
that failed is now totally repaired."
Izquierdo said power would be restored to Caracas shortly and to
the rest of the country during the evening.
Small-scale blackouts are common in rural regions in Venezuela but
the city's power supply is usually stable and Tuesday's outage was
the largest in years.
Hospitals reported confusion but were running services with
generators.
The national airport said flights were operating with minor
delays. Mobile phone systems went down for a short time and
residents formed long lines at banks.
Venezuela's socialist president, Hugo Chavez, nationalized two
electricity companies last year, but the power failure occurred at
the country's distribution company which has always been in state
hands.
Officials at state-owned oil company PDVSA said they could not
confirm or deny if refineries were affected, although the power was
out in the oil-producing states of Falcon and Zulia.
Many citizens in Caracas responded to calls from emergency services
to remain calm.
"We're not taking it too seriously, people are having fun," said
security guard Carlos Castillo, who was drinking a beer while he
waited for the traffic to calm before heading home.
