Maduro blames ‘criminals’ for nationwide blackout

VENEZUELA’S power was slowly being restored yesterday following another nationwide blackout, which Nicolás Maduro’s government blamed on “an electromagnetic attack”.

Over 90 per cent of the country was plunged into darkness on Monday afternoon, with public transport grinding to a halt and running water ceasing to flow.

Netblocks, a group monitoring internet activity, said that network data showed most of Venezuela was knocked offline, with national connectivity at just six per cent.

State television, a key way for the government to keep people informed, was also off the air, leaving frustrated Venezuelans to wonder how long they would be left in the dark.

Mr Maduro described the blackout as “a new criminal attack against the peace of the motherland”.

Jorge Rodríguez, the information minister, issued a statement on Twitter saying that the outage was due to “an electromagnetic attack”.

In reality Venezuela’s crumbling electric grid is collapsing due to years of neglect and poor maintenance in the struggling country. Many of the engineers needed to maintain the structures have joined the four million who have fled to neighbouring nations.

Freddy Brito, appointed energy minister in June after his predecessor lasted just two months, said yesterday that power had been restored in Caracas, the capital, and in five of the 23 states.

“We’re moving forward in the recovery of the national electricity system,” he said, praising workers at Corpoelec, the state-run power firm. Schools and offices were shut yesterday nationwide as efforts were made to restore power.

Juan Guaidó, who has been trying since January to oust Mr Maduro, called for his supporters to rally outside the National Assembly.

“They tried to hide the tragedy by rationing supplies across the country,” he said. “But their failure is evident: They destroyed the system and they don’t have answers.”

A previous blackout, in March, left millions of Venezuelans without water or phone communication for nearly a week, heightening tensions in a country locked in a political and social crisis.